migrant workers exploited

Heres an example of how the system of migrant workers are being exploited and whilst recognising it is in no way comparable to the way staff at the Metropole are treated or rewarded it emphasises the potential to exploit when there is an endless supply of cheap and accessible labour.
It is typical of the way the 'borgoise' can maximise their profits whilst at the same time furthering social ills.
Atthe metropole the migratory staff are mostly contracted through agencies and are made to work long unsociable hours for wages that work out at barely the minimum wage when you consider the length of shifts and the times of the day that the shifts cover.
it also alienates the large number of local unemployed who quite rightly decide not to put up with such measures in 2008.







Gangsters make migrants work on building site for 22p an hour
EXCLUSIVE: Scandal of immigrant builders who work for peanuts with no sick pay or holidays

(What's this?)Ruthless gangmasters are putting migrants to work on building sites for as little as 22p an hour.

The scandalous pay abuse saw one man get £8.80 for a 39-hour week and another £66 for 70 hours.

Mean bosses are illegally deducting large sums from wages for rent and utility bills - leaving many workers destitute. One had £228 taken in a week for tools.

Despite grafting round the clock, most do not get overtime, sick pay or holidays.
Scandalously, the worst example of the modern-day slavery was found on a £600million Government redevelopment site.

But with 800,000 immigrants having arrived from Eastern Europe in four years, it is feared the abuse could be far more widespread.

Alan Ritchie, boss of construction union UCATT, said: "This case is the worst we have seen, these workers were virtually destitute.

"We have been building up a big file on abuses of ganged workers.

"The fact it has occurred on a Private Finance Initiative site using taxpayers money is scandalous."

In the worst case the Mirror uncovered, Lithuanian men were recruited to work on the Government site by small dry wall lining firm called Produm Ltd.

Payslips show on top of money deducted for accommodation, each man had £76.80 taken weekly as their payment to the "construction industry scheme".

This basically registers them as self-employed - meaning their employer does not have to pay National Insurance But it is in breach of the law because none of the workers are believed to have given consent.

The pay abuse only came to light after some workers' wages stopped altogether with Produm owing up to five weeks' pay.

Last night most of the workers were too frightened to talk.

But one colleague, who refused to be named, said: "At the beginning of this month there were seven workers living in a cramped three bedroom flat in Mansfield. They cycle to work every day and are very hard grafters.

"They are being paid around £6 an hour but were hit heavily by illegal deductions which left them with next to nothing to take home.

"One week Produm took rent or tool money, then they'd take for utility bills, it was unbelievable.

"They struggled to find money for food some weeks. £8.80 won't even get you a few pints."

The migrants had been working at the Kings Mill hospital site in Mansfield, Notts, which is a closelymonitored development. According to industry guidelines, workers there should earn a basic £7.31 an hour.

Experts said wages of the man paid £8.80 for 39 hours makes a mockery of the National Minimum Wage, which is £5.52 an hour.