By Bruce E. Buchanan
In late December 2019, Trump Winery in Charlottesville, Virginia terminated seven workers because of their undocumented status, according to The Washington Post. These discharges occurred almost a year after the media reported the Trump Organization employed numerous undocumented employees at many of its properties, including several golf courses. The Trump Organization discharged many undocumented workers at its golf courses and pledged to do so at all of its properties.
Timing of Trump Winery firings
The timing of the Trump Winery firings is suspicious because it comes immediately after workers had finished the arduous annual grape harvest and as the vineyard’s winter downtime started. Omar Miranda, one of the discharged long-term employees stated “They (Trump Organization) didn’t make this decision in the summer because they needed us a lot then.” The Trump Organization responded to this allegation as follows: “Consistent with our efforts, we will immediately terminate any individual who has provided fake identification in order to unlawfully gain employment.”
Additionally, undocumented workers at the winery were broadcast by Univision in May 2019. However, no employment actions were taken at that time, presumably because the harvest season had begun. Miranda’s bosses praised his work, never mentioning immigration papers.
Miranda was officially employed by Trump Vineyard Estates LLC. Miranda first joined the winery under its previous owner and then was hired by the Trump Organization in 2013, using fake documents he had purchased for $120. “The papers one uses, they know it’s something illegal,” Miranda said. “The owner knows.”
Miranda said a longtime vineyard field supervisor who is no longer with the company was also undocumented and knew many employees working for him were in the same situation. Other managers helped fill out applications for employees without legal status, Miranda said.
2018 Discharges of Undocumented Workers at Trump Organization Golf Clubs
In late 2018, different media groups published articles stating Trump Organization golf courses employed undocumented workers. In response, Trump National Golf Clubs in Westchester, New York, Bedminster, New Jersey, and Pine Hill, New Jersey, terminated numerous undocumented workers.
The terminations at the Trump golf clubs appear to be as a result of internal I-9 audits that the Trump Organization conducted at its properties across the country after the media exposed the employment of undocumented workers. At that time, the Trump Organization, through Eric Trump, a son of President Trump and the executive vice president of the Trump Organization, stated “We have tens of thousands of employees across our properties and have very strict hiring practices. If any employee submitted false documentation in an attempt to circumvent the law, they will be terminated immediately. We take this issue very seriously.”
The Trump Winery appears to have improved the process of questioning alleged undocumented workers about their status in comparison from prior questioning by other Trump properties. According to Miranda, Kerry Woolard, the winery’s general manager, met with him and said, “So, when we looked at your forms and documents, some of the documentation did not seem genuine, or was insufficient. Do you currently have legal permission to work in the United States?” “No,” Miranda replied. “So unfortunately, this means we have to end our employment relationship today,” Woolard said.
Previously, the Trump Organization questioned former employee, Victor Reyes, a cook at the Pine Hill golf club: “The manager called me and asked, ‘Victor, are you legal?’ I said, ‘No, I am not legal.’ It surprised me because I knew he knew that I was illegal. I have worked for him 16 years and then he asks me.” After Reyes’ admission, he and other workers were told their documents did not pass inspection after an internal I-9 audit and that they should leave the premises immediately. Another employee at the Westminster golf club, Margarita Cruz, stated being similarly discharged.
Correct Method to Question Employees about Alleged Undocumented Status
It should be noted the Trump golf club’s method, as described by Reyes and Cruz, is not the proper way to conduct an internal I-9 audit. The best method is to first examine the documentation on file with the I-9 form, if the employer retained the documentation. If it appears to be fraudulent, an employee should be so notified and given the opportunity to present document(s) from the I-9 Lists of Acceptable Documents. If the employee cannot provide documentation to prove work authorization, the employee should then be discharged.
More on Trump Winery
The labor-intensive winery has long relied on about 25 to 30 Hispanic immigrants on H-2A temporary work visas. But there has also been a smaller parallel staff of undocumented employees who worked at the property year-round. The latter group was the group fired in December 2019.
After Trump purchased the winery in 2013, he converted the manor house into a boutique hotel known as the Albemarle Estate at Trump Winery. Some of the workers involved in renovating the manor house were also undocumented — members of a roving group of Trump Organization stonemasons. President Trump owns the land under the winery, which produced rental income between $300,000 and $3 million in 2018, and the Albemarle Hotel on the property, which earned $1.14 million in revenue in 2018. Legally, the wine is manufactured by the Eric Trump Wine Manufacturing Company, of which Eric Trump is president.
For Further Information
If you want to know more information on issues related to employer immigration compliance, I recommend you read The I-9 and E-Verify Handbook, a book I co-authored with Greg Siskind, and available at http://www.amazon.com/dp/0997083379.
Siskind Susser PC [email protected] www.visalaw.com