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  3. Workers recently arrested in federal raids filed a racketeering lawsuit accusing Wal-Mart of conspiring with contractors in a cr

Workers recently arrested in federal raids filed a racketeering lawsuit accusing Wal-Mart of conspiring with contractors in a cr

admin2012-10-20  57
问题      Workers recently arrested in federal raids filed a racketeering lawsuit accusing Wal-Mart of conspiring with contractors in a criminal enterprise that violated the civil rights and wage protections of immigrants who cleaned its stores.
     The federal court lawsuit seeks class-action status for perhaps thousands of immigrants, legal and illegal, hired by the contractors to clean the stores of the world’s largest retailer, said a lawyer for the plaintiffs, James L. Linsey.
     The scheme by Wal-Mart and the contractors violated the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO, by systematically depriving the workers of labor law protections over at least the last three years, according to the lawsuit.
     "It’s all designed to exploit the weakest, most vulnerable people in the world," Linsey said Tuesday, a day after the lawsuit was filed. He said the action replaces a lawsuit filed in state Superior Court last week by the same workers that sought more than $ 200,000 in back pay.
     Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams said the claims have no merit and the company will seek to have the lawsuit dismissed.
     "The Wal-Mart culture is based on respect for other people. and we would never condone treating anyone poorly, legal or otherwise. We want to get to the bottom of this and are as eager as anyone to see whatever evidence federal officials might have," Williams said. She said some 700 of its 3,000 U.S. stores are now cleaned by outside contractors, down from 1,500 several years ago.
     The company acknowledged last week that federal prosecutors gave notice it is the target of a criminal investigation into the hiring of illegal immigrants.
     An employer can face civil and criminal penalties for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants or failing to comply with certain employee record-keeping regulations.
     The nine workers, who cleaned stores in New Jersey, maintain they were denied overtime pay despite working at least 56 hours a week and that contractors failed to withhold taxes or make required workers’ compensation contributions.
     Also sued were four New Jersey contracting firms and their principals: Facility Solutions Inc., whose location was not immediately clear, and owner Kenneth Clancy; Ruth and Sons, no location given, and principal Giovanni Alabena; JWM Commercial Cleaning, of Dover, Morris County, and owner Felipe Soto; and RT Cleaning, of New Brunswick, and owner Raul Tijerino. None of the companies had listed phones.
What does it mean by "the most vulnerable people in the world"?
选项 A、The people are from the poor country and they do not have much status in America.
B、The people are not rich and do not know much about the laws.
C、The people are not good at English, thus easily cheated.
D、The people are illiterate and poor.
答案A
解析 语义理解题。“世界上最脆弱的人群”是原告律师所用之词，故这里是指他的客户，那些来自贫国的移民。
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