H-1B teacher scandal in Louisiana
H-1B teacher scandal in Louisiana
Date: Wednesday, October 14, 2009 10:29 PM
<<<<< JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER No. 2061 -- 10/14/2009 >>>>>
A new H-1B scandal is making the news -- this time it involves H-1B teachers
from the Philippines that were hired to work in the Recovery School District
in New Orleans.
The story begins in 2007 with a Louisiana school superintendent that claimed
he was having trouble filling about 650 teaching jobs in New Orleans. He said
he was going to "cast a broad net" to recruit new teachers. He did indeed cast
a broad net -- it went all the say to the Philippines!
Soon after teacher shortages were announced, Louisiana school officials
started taking all expense paid trips to Manila to find teachers that would
work in New Orleans. The school district didn't hire the foreign teachers
directly however -- they used a bodyshop named Universal Placement
International, who used H-1B visas to import the labor.
UPI is a California based company. This Pinoy teacher's blog has some
interesting insider information on UPI:
http://pinoyteachershub.blogspot.com/2008/11/universal-status-dissolved.html
NOTE: According to Wikipedia, "Pinoy" is a demonym referring to Filipino
people in the Philippines as well as overseas Filipinos around the world.
The school district hired large numbers of Filipinos to work in New Orleans.
Being slightly more specific, one superintendent stated that the schools
"consummated an agreement to bring in Filipino ladies". OK, it's just a guess
on my part but I'll bet most of the school officials who decided to hire these
female teachers were a bunch of horny white guys, and I would also bet that
the female teachers are all young. Shame! Shame!
Shame!
Apparently the yearly cap of 65,000 H-1B visas wasn't an impediment to hiring
boat loads of Pinoy teachers. In the legal complaint (see on CWA
website) UPI made this boastful statement
While other placement agencies are subjected to H-1B work visa cap,
we are not. We have highly qualified attorneys who assist us and
enable us to place international teachers for H- 1B visas
throughout the entire year.
At some point the Louisiana teacher's union decided to file a complaint on
behalf of the Filipino teachers against Universal Placement International.
According to the union at least 200 teachers in Louisiana schools were
extorted out of thousands of dollars apiece. They also allege that the foreign
teachers were held in "virtual servitude", which is a weird charge considering
that indentured servitude is the purpose of the H-1B visa system. I doubt the
union will get very far if they push the servitude part of the complaint
because the courts are unlikely to care.
There are many things UPI did that could get them in trouble, but some of the
most egregious ones included charging the teachers large placement fees to get
hired charging usury style interest rates of 3-5 percent per month if the
teachers couldn't pay the fees in cash. Predatory behavior like this happens
all the time in foreign countries but in the U.S. it violates H-1B
regulations. UPI's most blatant violations include charging the teachers
processing fees for the H-1B visas (H-1B requires that employers pay the
fees).
After reading the recommended articles it may occur to you that the union
filed the complaint on behalf of Filipino teachers -- not Americans who were
denied employment or perhaps even laid off from the same schools. Nary has a
word been mentioned about American teachers that could be hired for these
teaching jobs. In other words, it doesn't matter if American jobs are ripped
off by foreigners as long as the foreigners don't get ripped off by their
employers.
If the union wins their complaint the result will be that Filipino teachers
will get a fistful of dollars as compensation for the exploitation they
suffered by the bodyshops. Bet on the teachers from the Philippines keeping
their jobs in Louisiana while Americans desperately try to find teaching jobs
from schools that claim they can't find enough teachers. Louisiana school
officials will avoid getting into trouble by claiming they didn't know that
UPI was exploiting their H-1B contractors.
It could be argued that enforcing regulations will insure equity in the labor
force, and therefore will reduce the desire of employers to favor exploitable
foreign workers. In my opinion a much more direct way to insure that Americans
get the jobs they need would be to abolish the H-1B program.
REFERENCES:
http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009910020333
Company that brought Filipino teachers to Caddo being investigated
http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20091008/NEWS04/910080324/Pastorek-disavows-knowing-contract-with-recruiter-was-ended
Pastorek disavows knowing contract with recruiter was ended
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_13462616?nclick_check=1
Complaint filed against recruiter of teachers
http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2009/10/teacher-recruitment_agency_acc.html
Teacher-recruitment agency accused of extortion in union complaint
http://www.cwalocal4250.org/outsourcing/binarydata/LFT%20Complaints.pdf
Company Violated Law and Human Rights of Filipino Teachers
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009910020333
October 2, 2009
Company that brought Filipino teachers to Caddo being investigated
By Icess Fernandez
ifernandez@gannett.com
The Louisiana Workforce Commission and the Louisiana attorney general's office
are investigating allegations that a recruiting company instrumental in
helping school districts, including Caddo, bring teachers from the Philippines
violated state law.
Among the allegations are that Universal Placement International and its
president, Lourdes "Lulu" Navarro charged Filipino teachers large amounts of
money for teaching positions in the United States. Once here, teachers were
charged more money, required to live in tight quarters -- sometimes four to a
two-bedroom apartment -- and threatened with visa revocation or at times
physical harm to family members back home if they talked.
"They were told that if they talked to anyone, they were threatened with
deportation or loss of jobs," said Dan McNeil, associate director of the legal
department of the American Federation of Teachers. "Now we have learned that
she's (Navarro) following up on renewal. When they're up for a visa renewal,
she doesn't fill out the paperwork, the visa is denied, and then she calls
(Immigration and Customs Enforcement) on them."
The Louisiana Federation of Teachers, the state teacher's union, filed
complaints on behalf of more 200 Filipino teachers in East Baton Rouge,
Jefferson and Caddo parishes and the Recovery School District in New Orleans.
Louisiana is the only state where the union has filed a complaint, said
McNeil. He added he only knew of the recruiting company operating in one other
state --California.
According to the complaint, UPI and its sister company PARS International
Agency would charge teacher hopefuls in the Philippines $6,600 to be eligible
to be placed in a teaching position. Teachers were told to take out a loan if
they didn't have the money, sometimes at 3 to 5 percent monthly interest
rates, the complaint claims. The recruiting company would then arrange
interviews with school district personnel in the Philippines.
Those officials were flown into the country at the recruiting company's
expense. UPI paid $8,362 to fly Caddo administrators Jan Holliday, Sara Ebrab
and Pam Baker to hire teachers.
The complaint also details additional money the teachers had to pay after they
received job offers. The teachers had to pay an additional placement fee -- 20
percent of their first year's income. Once in the country, the complaint
claims teachers were forced to sign over 10 percent of their monthly income or
be flown back to the Philippines.
The complaint also has information about Navarro's criminal history, which
includes convictions for crimes in California and New Jersey for fraud, grand
theft and money laundering.
On Thursday via cell phone, Narravo deferred comments to her attorney Richard
Wilner of Wilner & O'Reilly. Phone calls to Wilner, who is an immigration
attorney, were not returned.
Lynn Dias-Button, spokeswoman for the Louisiana Workforce Commission, said
this was the first time a complaint had been filed with an out-of-state
company so the organization was in uncharted waters. The next step for the
commission is to notify the recruiting company that a complaint has been filed
and the company will have 20 days to respond. Soon after notification has been
sent, the commission will ask for records. If they are not sent, they'll
subpoena them. Dias-Button said it would take time to resolve the matter.
"It'll take some time because it's an out-of-state company," she said.
During a news conference Thursday, Caddo Superintendent Gerald Dawkins said he
was appalled to learn of the allegations. The teachers were hired before
Dawkins became superintendent.
"I am shocked and outraged any agency would treat anyone like that,"
Dawkins said, adding he has talked with a couple of teachers and he has found
some of the allegations to be true. He said Caddo will launch an
investigation. "We will certainly find if this will affect the livelihood of
the teachers."
Dawkins also added the district did not have a contract with the recruitment
company, and that the district didn't pay for the teacher's visas. The
district heard about the company through recommendations from other districts,
he said.
The district helped find housing for the teachers, providing information on
apartments and possible living situations to the company, Dawkins said.
In 2008, the Caddo Parish School District hired 43 teachers in hard to fill
positions such as special education and math. At the time, it was a solution
to a problem.
But even before the teachers arrived, rumors of how the teachers recruited by
UPI were being treated in other districts were circulating. According to the
Aug. 5 Caddo Public School Board meeting minutes, board member Charlotte
Crawley questioned the teachers' visas, the commitment the district was making
to the company and how housing would be handled.
However, two of her questions -- how does the company make its money and
whether teachers were reimbursed -- were never answered, Crawley said.
"I want a full investigation and I want real answers," she said. "I think
we're going to need a policy restricting staff from entering into this kind of
relationship.
During the same meeting, board member Tammy Phelps asked then interim
superintendent Wanda Gunn why board members were not told of the
administrator's plan to recruit in a foreign country.
The minutes said "Mrs. Gunn explained that normally recruiting requests do not
come to the board as an agenda item," and that "Mrs. Gunn stated she believes
we have a good rationale, a good background with the agency, and communication
with others that have used this agency in the past and this was presented to
the board for their information."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20091008/NEWS04/910080324/Pastorek-disavows-knowing-contract-with-recruiter-was-ended
October 8, 2009
Pastorek disavows knowing contract with recruiter was ended
Caddo went overseas for teachers same month La. did not renew accord
By Icess Fernandez
ifernandez@gannett.com
The same month three Caddo school employees traveled to the Philippines to
hire teachers with the help of a recruiter, officials at Louisiana s Recovery
School District decided not to renew its contract with the company.
The Recovery School District, which hired 19 Filipino teachers in New Orleans,
decided against renewing its contract with Universal Placement International
when it ended in June 2008.
But not even state Education Superintendent Paul Pastorek, who signed the
contract, knew it was not renewed, he said during a meeting Wednesday with The
Times editorial board.
"I did not know about it and would not know about it. Nor would the board,"
said Pastorek, who had visited Oak Park MicroSociety Elementary School earlier
that day.
And the same month the Recovery School District decided not to renew the
contract, Caddo school administrators traveled to Manila to hire teachers.
The Caddo officials also didn t know the contract was not renewed. Caddo hired
43 teachers to work in difficult-to-place areas such as special education and
math.
Last week, the Louisiana Federation of Teachers submitted a complaint to the
Louisiana Workforce Commission and the state attorney general s office on
behalf of more than 200 Filipino teachers who claim they had to pay about
$15,000 each to apply for jobs in U.S. school districts. And once they were
here, they paid 10 percent of their monthly salary to Universal Placement
International and were threatened with harm to their families back home if
they didn t pay, the complaint alleges.
According to the Recovery School District s contract with the recruiter, which
is part of the union s complaint, the accord was in effect July 1, 2007, to
June 30, 2008. It was signed Sept. 28, 2007, by several state Education
Department officials, including Pastorek, Paul Vallas, superintendent of the
Recovery School District, Ollie Tyler, the state s deputy education
superintendent, and Linda Job, president of the state Board of Elementary and
Secondary Education.
In the contract, the state agreed to pay Universal Placement International
$2,500 to $50,000 for each candidate. The state paid a total of $47,500 to the
recruiting company.
Pastorek said he didn t know exactly how the Education Department came to do
business with Universal Placement International. He became state
superintendent March 2007, after initial talks with the recruiter had started,
he said.
One of Pastorek s initial tasks when he took the position was to find 650
teachers for the Recovery School District in New Orleans. As more post-Katrina
students were returning, the district "cast a broad net" to recruit new
teachers, he said.
"It was really begun before I walked into the door. It began in the Recovery
School District in New Orleans by the people down there. They were talking to
this company, the New Teacher Project, and to a number of different
recruiters.
"When Paul Vallas came in, we ultimately consummated an agreement to bring in
Filipino ladies. And we brought in a number of other people, out-of-staters.
..... That was all being done in the Recovery School District."
The Recovery School District can t process a contract, meaning it can t enter
into an agreement for itself, Pastorek said. The district can negotiate a
contract but has to make a recommendation to the state Education Department to
enter an agreement.
"We have some people up there who actually do the processing, the checking and
evaluation to make sure it meets standards and so on and so forth,"
Pastorek said. "To be honest with you, I never knew about this specific
contract. ..... All I knew is that we got the teachers, and that s all I
really cared about at the end of the day."
The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, the governing entity
for the Recovery School District, reviewed but did not approve the contract,
Pastorek said. Contracts for less than $50,000 don t have to be approved by
the state education board but are listed among other contracts and are part of
the public record, he said. And when that contract was not renewed, Pastorek
said, it did not have to be brought in front of the board.
The contract with Universal Placement International was not renewed was
because the company was "pushy," the state education superintendent explained.
"There was some sense on the part of our HR department in their dealing with
them that there seemed to be a pushiness to them. That they were pushing too
hard for the business and it made our people feel uncomfortable. "
But the ultimate decision to not renew the UPI contract was not his, Pastorek
said. "The decision whether or not to renew a contract is left up to the
Recovery School District. Paul Vallas makes that decision."
There is a vetting process companies have to go through to do business with
the Education Department, Pastorek said. "One of the things we re looking at,
because we contracted directly with the company through the Recovery School
District, we re looking at our process to determine if our process is weak or
our execution of the process was weak. I have some people doing the research
on that; we ll have a fix on that here pretty soon."
Despite the process, some things just fall through the cracks, Pastorek said.
"I think that school district or the RSD, we execute a lot of contracts with a
whole lot of people and, you know, I think in spite of best efforts, you re
going to run into people who are less scrupulous.
"In this case, I don t want to say this enterprise is less scrupulous because
I haven t heard from the other side," Pastorek said. "So I don t want to rush
to judgment. ..... But one thing I do know as a fact is that the company was
not qualified to do business in Louisiana.
Sometimes that s an oversight by businesses who aren t qualified to do
business in Louisiana. ..... Doesn t mean that they are scrupulous."
Pastorek said he has heard positive reports about the Filipino teacher s
abilities but worries that, as a result of the incident, a moratorium would be
put on using recruiters to search for employees. "While we need to be
concerned about unscrupulous vendors, we can t throw the baby out with the
bath water here.
"There are many good vendors out there who do recruit for schools and school
systems," Pastorek said. "The one concern I have about this discussion is that
we go to the opposite end of the spectrum. The concern is that the recruiter
made a deal with the people who were being recruited that was onerous."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_13462616?nclick_check=1
Complaint filed against recruiter of teachers
By KEVIN McGILL Associated Press Writer
Posted: 10/01/2009 10:59:18 AM PDT
Updated: 10/01/2009 05:49:18 PM PDT
NEW ORLEANS -- A teacher union has filed complaints with state authorities
alleging a company that recruits Filipino teachers for Louisiana schools is
operating illegally in the state, and charging the teachers exorbitant,
illegal fees.
The Louisiana Federation of Teachers said the teachers were cheated out of
thousands of dollars. The LFT filed complaints with the state Attorney
General's Office and the Louisiana Workforce Commission against Universal
Placement Services of Los Angeles.
"This is about human rights," LFT President Steve Monaghan said during a
Thursday news conference in Baton Rouge. "It's disgusting, it's un-American
and it's unacceptable."
The complaints were filed on behalf of Filipino teachers working in Caddo,
East Baton Rouge and Jefferson parishes and in state-run schools in New
Orleans. The company did not respond to a telephone request for comment from
its director.
The union said the teachers should be relieved from their contracts binding
them to Universal and that Universal should refund approximately $15,000 in
fees that each teacher allegedly paid to be hired.
According to the complaint to the Workforce Commission, there are more than
200 Filipino school teachers working in at least five school systems in
Louisiana, including the four mentioned in the complaint, plus Avoyelles
Parish. The union alleges teacher recruits in the Philippines were initially
charged $6,600 in fees covering costs including training, travel,
Advertisement medical exams, legal fees and visas.
"After the Filipino teachers received job offers, Universal then required the
teachers to pay an additional placement fee of 20 percent of their first
year's annual gross income, which averaged between $8,000 to $10,000 per
teacher depending on their projected salary," the complaint alleges.
It also alleges that Universal referred the teachers to predatory lending
agencies to cover the fees -- agencies that charged interest rates of 3-5
percent per month.
More fees and expensive legal entanglements followed once the teachers arrived
in the United States, the complaint alleges. Those included contracts in which
the teachers agreed to pay 10 percent of their monthly income to Universal for
24 months, and fees for annual visa renewals.
The complaint also alleges the company holds the immigration documents of the
teachers to coerce payments.
The complaint alleges various violations of state law by Universal, including
failing to maintain an office and file a bond in Louisiana, failure to obtain
a required state license and, in New Orleans, illegally collecting fees from
both the teachers and from the state-run Recovery School District, which the
union says paid Universal for recruiting services.
Paul Vallas, superintendent of the RSD, acknowledged Thursday that the
district used Universal's services -- and other recruiting agencies -- in the
summer of 2007 when it was suffering a severe teacher shortage.
"We used them to a limited degree," Vallas said. "There were a number of
recruiting agencies that had been recommended. This was one of them. They
recommended 60 teacher candidates, 19 of which we hired and all were eminently
qualified.
"We only compensated them for the number of teachers that were recruited and
we are now sponsoring those teachers, helping them in securing or renewing
their visas and their compensation is covered within our system."
Vallas said the RSD ended its contract with Universal, preferring to work with
not-for-profit groups like Teach for America.
"We felt they were a bit too aggressive," Vallas said of Universal. "We just
are not comfortable dealing with for-profit recruiting companies. When for-
profit companies are too eager to offer us things, that always makes us a bit
suspicious."
Vallas said the district had not received any complaints about Universal,
which was vetted by the state as part of its procurement process.
"I'm not suggesting that the people were not exploited, but the district's
human resources department is interviewing the teachers individually to see if
there are any concerns."
Daniel McNeil, an attorney with the American Federation of Teachers, said
additional complaints will be filed with the U.S. Departments of Labor,
Justice and Department of Homeland Security, citing possible violations of
federal criminal and immigration laws.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2009/10/teacher-recruitment_agency_acc.html
Teacher-recruitment agency accused of extortion in union complaint By Sarah
Carr October 01, 2009, 10:03PM
Loida Virina said she forked over all the money in her possession, and then
sold her home and car in the Philippines for the opportunity to come teach in
the United States.
monoghan_mcneil.JPGRusty Costanza/The Times-PicayuneSteve Monaghan, left,
president of the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, and Daniel McNeil, an
attorney with the American Federation of Teachers, speak during a news
conference in New Orleans on Thursday.
Universal Placement International, the firm that recruited her, charged
thousands of dollars to help her find a job at a Louisiana school. Then, when
she arrived in California last summer, she said, the company forced her to
sign papers she did not have time to read and cautioned her and other new
recruits not to ask questions.
After signing the papers, the woman heard the voice of Lourdes Navarro, the
head of the firm, on the speaker phone. Navarro warned the recruits not to
mingle with Filipino teachers outside of their group once they arrived in
Baton Rouge. If they did not obey, Navarro threatened she would promptly send
them back to the Philippines. The woman's allegations, included in a signed
deposition, were part of a long complaint the Louisiana Federation of Teachers
filed with the state's attorney general and workforce commission Wednesday.
The complaint alleges that Universal Placement International, which has
recruited at least 200 teachers to Louisiana schools, extorted them out of
thousands of dollars apiece and held them in "virtual servitude."
The company has recruited teachers for Jefferson, East Baton Rouge and Caddo
parishes, as well as the state-run Recovery School District in New Orleans,
with the highest number in Baton Rouge.
$15,000 charge
The teachers allege that the firm's leader, Navarro, charged recruits about
$15,000 to obtain a job, and then required them to turn over 10 percent of
their salary for two years. Universal Placement International is registered as
a corporation in Louisiana, but is based in California and the Philippines,
and does not have a license as an employing agency in Louisiana.
Many U.S. employers, including school districts, use recruiting companies such
as Universal to attract workers. And the practice of charging foreigners fees
to help connect them to employers is not in itself illegal
-- in fact, it's a fairly common practice.
But the union complaint notes that it's illegal to charge fees of both the
employer and the applicant, which Universal did in the case of the RSD
teachers. They allege that it's also illegal to charge teachers employed in
Louisiana fees prior to arriving in the state.
Finally, they note that the visa fees should have been charged to the
employer, not the worker, a possible violation of federal law.
"The alleged behavior of this recruiter and the treatment of these teachers is
quite frankly disgusting and an affront to basic American values, " said
federation President Steve Monaghan, in the statement.
Navarro did not return two calls made to Universal Placement International on
Thursday.
The complaint alleges that Navarro has been convicted of money laundering and
other crimes in both California and New Jersey.
The Associated Press reported in 2003 that she was convicted in California on
felony counts of Medi-Cal fraud, grand theft, money laundering and identity
theft, and was originally sentenced to five years in prison and to pay
$200,000 in restitution.
Are 'excellent teachers'
According to documents in the LFT complaint, Navarro's company paid for
administrators from East Baton Rouge and Caddo parishes to take recruiting
trips to the Philippines. The state also paid the company $47,500 in 2007 to
recruit up to 20 special education teachers for the Recovery School District,
at a time when the district was hiring hundreds of new employees.
"From all indications, these have been excellent teachers, " said RSD
Superintendent Paul Vallas. But he said the district did not use the company's
services again, partly because of its aggressive style.
Thirteen of the 19 teachers the district hired through Universal still work
for the district, he said.
Jefferson Parish has recruited 40 teachers through the program, a "few of whom
have come forward" with serious allegations, said Meladie Munch, president of
the Jefferson Federation of Teachers.
Coerced into signing
In signed statements, several East Baton Rouge Parish schoolteachers alleged
that they were forced to pay thousands of dollars to the company's counterpart
in the Philippines before they left. As soon as they arrived in California,
they said, they were coerced into signing a second contract agreeing to fork
over 10 percent of their pay. At that point, they felt they had little choice
but to sign.
"When we arrived . . . we were made to sign a contract without giving us a
chance to read it, " Rowena Sarcauga said in a statement.
Another teacher, Alma Ganzon, said "I was not given a chance to read the 4 to
5 pages contract. We were warned not to ask a lot of questions."
Antonio Limjoco said he actually had time to glimpse the clause about the 10
percent payment, and questioned the company representative about it.
"I was not entertained at all, " he said. "Being in a foreign land with a
plane to catch and deep in debt after paying all those fees, I signed blindly.
At that time when everything is mortgaged except my soul, there was no turning
back."
Once in Baton Rouge, the teachers alleged, they were forced to live two to a
bedroom in the Savoy Plaza -- with the agency serving as a middleman between
the teachers and the complex's managers.
Virina said in her statement that the teachers were charged higher rent than
other tenants in the complex.
Isolation alleged
Several of the teachers said that company officials prohibited them from
communicating with the broader Filipino community in Baton Rouge, or other
Americans.
Virina said that Navarro visited Louisiana in August 2008, meeting with all
the Filipino teachers at a Chinese restaurant.
"She asked this question: 'Who among you ride with American teachers in going
to school?' She warned us again not to ride anymore, and that night after the
meeting, she called me in my phone and telling me not to ride anymore nor
talking to Americans."
Teachers said the company charged them for everything: furniture, carpools,
food.
Ganzon described a welcome dinner that a previous batch of teachers held when
her cohort arrived at the Savoy Plaza, including adobo, rice, soda and water.
"According to them, it is a service of love and camaraderie for fellow
teachers."
But the next morning, she said, the company collected $15 from each teacher
for the simple meal.
After Hurricane Gustav, Navarro told the teachers they would be sent to jail
if they tried to get food stamps, according to Virina.
"I have so many loans in the Philippines, in fact, I was not able to support
my three children and husband because all of my salary goes to financing
agencies which I borrowed from just to pay for . . . Universal."
Prosecution requested
As part of its complaint, the teachers union included a copy of the brochure
sent by the company to school districts, promising "we offer our SERVICE FOR
FREE!"
"We understand that because of the budget constraint that the school district
does not have any funding for this type of service, " the brochure states.
The company promises to pre-screen and interview the candidates, including
performing criminal background checks. It also promises to process the visas
and other paperwork; all of the teachers are in America on H-1B visas, which
allow U.S. employers to temporarily hire foreign workers in specialty
occupations. The Filipino teachers all meet the state's definition of "highly
qualified" teachers, according to union officials.
"The one truthful, honest thing Universal has done is provide a pool of highly
qualified teachers, " said Daniel McNeil, associate director of the legal
department for the national American Federation of Teachers.
McNeil said the filings with the Louisiana attorney general and workforce
commission are the first in a "coordinated legal effort" that could involve a
federal investigation since the teachers were all in Louisiana under a federal
visa program. He said Universal performs the same service for schools in
California, although he wasn't aware of any investigation yet into the
company's presence there.
The complaint asks for the prosecution of Navarro, and also that the $15,000
payments be returned to the teachers and their contracts with Universal be
declared invalid.
"One of the reasons they came here is to send money home, " McNeil said.
"And at the end of the day there's no money left."
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