(gentle music)
- [Shayna] Why don't we just go around
and do case updates?
- So yeah, whoever wants to start.
- I guess I can start.
So I'm making calculations
for my case regarding the cleaners.
I still need to clear up a couple
of questions with the clients.
- That's gonna be an interesting client counseling issue,
right, because the clients in that case are all
still working with the employer,
and they do wanna keep their jobs.
And so we're gonna have to make sure we work
with them to come up with a strategy that works best.
- The case that I currently have, we have several workers
who were getting paid under the minimum wage
for over a year.
They tried talking to the employer, letting them know
that they know their rights, that they want
to get the minimum wage.
However, that has not worked.
(attendee speaking in Spanish)
- Those three clients came to us
because they work in the janitorial services industry.
They work cleaning retail establishments.
This is unfortunately a problem
that we see very frequently.
The janitorial services industry is an industry
that is plagued by improper wage payment of workers.
(vacuum humming)
(woman speaking in Spanish)
- When the students make the phone calls to the employers,
they practice them
and we go through different scenarios
of how the call might go.
We try very hard to consider all of the different
types of responses the employer might give.
- Okay, how'd it feel?
- It felt good.
(melancholy music)
- The hardest part of the job
is the fear for our clients
that they have to live with all the time
and just the cases where
even though we know something
illegal is happening,
an employer is intimidating enough
and has kind of enough to work with
that we end up advising a worker not to go forward
because there's too much at risk for them.
(ringback tone)
- I called the employer,
he was really aggressive.
He said he didn't mind going to court
and he just kept repeating that
he was going to take matters into his own hands.
I told him that retaliation was illegal
that we would pursue a claim for retaliation.
I knew that he was gonna be aggressive
just because of what my clients told me.
I just wasn't expecting him to be
this aggressive.
- Well, it's a really stressful situation
for our clients.
With these constant threats
as we go through the negotiations.
(melancholy music)
- We were hoping that the initial inquiry
that Rennier made would
lead to some movement from the
from their immediate employer.
That did not happen.
We've reached out again to their immediate employer
and also now to the national cleaning company
that contracts with the immediate supervisor.
And, it's a stressful time
for the clients, for sure.
(light music)
- Yoo hoo!
- Having this experience with the Workers' Rights Clinic
has had a great impact on me.
At the moment, I'm not sure what I'm gonna do,
but this is definitely and option for me.
(speaks in Spanish)
(laughing)
(speaking in Spanish)
- Yoo hoo!