Posted on 08/18/2011 5:13:51 PM PDT by Hunton Peck
HERSHEY, Pa. (AP) — Foreign students working at a candy warehouse protested conditions and pay Thursday, chanting on Chocolate Avenue under streetlights shaped like Hershey's Kisses, arguing that they were employed under the guise of a cultural exchange but toil away in what amounts to a sweets sweatshop. The State Department said it was investigating.
More than 100 students gathered in touristy downtown Hershey, home to the nation's second-largest candy maker, complaining of hard physical labor, steep pay deductions for rent that often left them with little spending money, and no cultural enrichment....
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The students earn about $8 an hour, the same as their American counterparts, and were fully informed about the nature of the work, SHS spokesman Sean Connolly said. The company does not intend to fire the students for their protest, he said.
"We continue to discuss the concerns they have," Connolly said. "We hope there's a resolution."
The leader of the Council for Educational Travel USA, a nonprofit based in San Clemente, Calif., that also helped place the students, asserted that their motives weren't entirely pure.
"Somebody has been circulating a letter that they will get several thousand dollars back if they protest and be a part of this movement," said CEO Rick Anaya. "We have not gotten any cooperation from the kids. Somebody is promising them a lot of money in order to participate in this protest."
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The complaints began this year with two students from Central America who went to the state AFL-CIO, which referred the matter to the national office and the New Orleans-based National Guestworker Alliance, Bloomingdale said.
One foreign worker, he said, showed him a paycheck for 32 hours — at $8.35 an hour — that amounted to just $44 after state and local taxes and deductions for rent.
(Excerpt) Read more at centurylink.net ...
a sweetshop?
“and no cultural enrichment...:
TRANSLATION: they were not allowed to play mexican music while working.
Because we all know how great work conditions and benefits are in Central America. Perhaps these ingrates should be treated like they would if they protested in Central America.
They didn't plan on paying in, they ony planned on taking out.
I thought Hershey had shut these plants down and moved them
to S. America already....wasn’t that the story a couple years ago?
This is a bunch of BS. Did the AFL-CIO get contacted or was it the other way around. These union thugs hover all over places that trying to get into these things. I’ve seen it before.
Why the hell are foreign students working there when our unemployment rate is so high? I would say 9.1% but we all know that is a lie.
Nothing here Hersheys can’t fix with a suitcase full of $100 bills to the Democrat Party. How sweet it is!
From what I read, these punks are part of some study abroad thing. My wife did it over in England. If you look at the picture, they look like a pack of filthy spoiled vermin.
Since when is working 32 hours/week sweatshop conditions?
Hey Folks. this is the beauty of our capitalist system. If you don’t like the work or feel it to hard for you, QUIT. There’s no anchor in your a**
They DO look just like liberal spoiled brats who think that they should have everything handed to them and not have to even work, let alone hard work.?
Some communist union are certainly paying them or at least enticing them to protest. It IS the communist way to get everything that you can from those stupid Americans.
I’d take one of those jobs!!!!
Room and board, all the fun at Hershey theme park and 44 bucks extra!!!!
I want it!
The leader of the Council for Educational Travel USA, a nonprofit based in San Clemente, Calif., that also helped place the students, asserted that their motives weren’t entirely pure.
“Somebody has been circulating a letter that they will get several thousand dollars back if they protest and be a part of this movement,” said CEO Rick Anaya. “We have not gotten any cooperation from the kids. Somebody is promising them a lot of money in order to participate in this protest.”
The plant is by the park we saw it yesterday on our visit to Hershey. They did send the York Peppermint Pattie production to Mexico. This pissed me off.
It is a recession. Hire Americans. Even loafer Americans can complain and strike after all, so these are not doing “jobs that Americans won’t do”. And no, I don’t miss him yet.
Maybe these jackasses should have done some on-line research on Milton Hershey. >PS
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