Trump Megadonors (ULINE) attacking VP Harris for allowing "Mexican Invasion" employed undocumented workers [View all]

A company owned by two of Donald Trump’s top mega-donors has routinely brought dozens of its workers from Mexico to staff its warehouses in Wisconsin and other locations even though they do not appear to have permission to work in the US, according to a Guardian investigation.

Uline – a giant Wisconsin-based office and shipping supply company controlled by billionaires Liz and Dick Uihlein – shuttles in its own workers from Mexico, who are using tourist visas and visas meant for employees who are entering the US temporarily to receive professional training, known as B1 visas. But instead of being part of a dedicated training program, the Mexican employees stay for one to six months and – sources with direct knowledge of the matter allege – perform normal work in Uline’s US warehouses.

Lawyers and immigrants’ advocates told the Guardian they believed the alleged practice is likely illegal and could be exploitative of the workers enrolled in the program.

The company has allegedly used employees without proper work permits even as Dick Uihlein’s Super Pac, Restoration Pac, supported Trump’s presidential campaign with a TV advertisement attacking his opponent Kamala Harris for allowing an immigrant “invasion” at the US-Mexico border. The Uihleins have emerged as a major force in rightwing politics, spending tens of millions of dollars supporting candidates, including president-elect Trump and other rightwing politicians, who have called for a mass deportation of immigrants. They were the second-largest political donors in this year’s election, giving more than even Elon Musk, the world’s richest man.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/20/uline-mexican-workers-trump

Uline, the office and shipping supply company controlled by billionaire Republican donors Liz and Dick Uihlein, staffed its facilities with Mexican workers using tourist visa and B1 visas meant for employees entering the country temporarily to receive professional training, according to sources with direct knowledge of the matter, but have them instead perform normal work duties, reported The Guardian.

“It does not allow them to obtain wages for labor in the United States, it absolutely does not,” said Marc Christopher, a Wisconsin-based immigration lawyer. “If they’re doing warehouse work, especially second or third shift, that’s not a close call ... absolutely 100 percent not allowed."

The sources said Uline launched the so-called "shuttle support" program about three years ago, even as Dick Uihlein’s Restoration PAC paid for pro-Trump TV advertisements attacking Kamala Harris for supposedly allowing an immigrant “invasion," and sources added that Liz Uihlein and other top executives were aware of the practice.

“They were not able to staff their warehouses, especially in Pennsylvania," said one source with close knowledge of the matter, the report says. "So they looked at Mexico for workforce."

https://www.rawstory.com/liz-and-dick-uihlein/