DOL takes action against logging cos.
Two Maine logging companies have been barred from hiring foreign workers this year and next year following an investigation into inappropriate hiring practices.
The U.S. Department of Labor has debarred Jackman-based E.J. Carrier and Clayton Lake-based Pelletier and Pelletier, meaning the companies will not be allowed to hire foreign workers under the H-2A visa program for this year and next year, according to a press release from the Maine Department of Labor. Both companies have been charged with failing to adequately recruit U.S. workers for positions where foreign workers were sought and failing to comply with the federal audit process, which is still ongoing. The companies could also face other legal action by the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice for discriminating against U.S. workers.
Federal and state laws require that jobs are offered to Maine residents before being offered to Canadians or other foreign workers, and companies are only granted H-2A visas if they prove they cannot find qualified local workers, according to the release. Reports of logging companies violating these laws forced Maine DOL Commissioner Laura Fortman to request a federal audit of the H-2A requests in the state's logging industry.
Three other companies have been charged with violating state law requiring loggers to provide proof of ownership of equipment operated by H-2A workers. Maine Attorney General Janet Mills has filed three cases in Caribou Superior Court against A.D. Logging Inc., B.J. Jalbert Inc. and S.L. Logging Inc.
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