Racketeering law used to prosecute employers of illegal immigrants

By Olivia Doerge
Adelante staff writer

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The government has raised the stakes for employers of undocumented immigrants in recent years by using the federal racketeering law, or RICO (The Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act). Kansas City immigration attorney Mira Mdivani cited three recent cases, including the Tyson Foods case, which is currently at trial.
Federal authorities are using RICO as a big stick in immigration investigations to push into new areas of criminal prosecution, Mdivani said. RICO is powerful because it allows courts to award triple damages, imprison executives, and seize properties and assets of violators. RICO is also a tool for workers and competitors to use against employers who hire undocumented workers.
In the Tyson case, the Department of Justice is suing the company for participation in a scheme to smuggle and employ undocumented immigrants. Six company officials have been indicted in the case; one of them committed suicide shortly after the indictments were announced in December 2001.
Three other recent cases applied RICO to prosecute companies suspected of using illegal immigrants.
In Mendoza v. Zirkle Fruit Co., Zirkle Fruit Company and Matson Fruit Company in Washington State were sued by their own workers. The workers claimed the company was knowingly using undocumented workers that were employed by a subcontractor. The ruling showed that a company that knowingly uses someone else’s unauthorized workers may be held liable.
In Commercial Cleaning Services L.L.C. v. Colin Service Systems, Inc., one small cleaning company, along with several similar firms filed a class action lawsuit against Colin Service Systems, Inc., one of the country’s largest commercial cleaning services. The complaint alleged that Colin had a business advantage over the other firms, because it employed illegal immigrants at lower wages.
In another case settled in Iowa on March 4, a subcontractor for an agricultural firm was sued under RICO for employing undocumented workers. Instead of challenging the RICO charge, the subcontractor agreed to a fine of $300,000.