USA: Mar-Jac Poultry denies knowing 16 year old Guatemalan worker who died in a worksite accident was underage
Summary
Date Reported: 19 Jul 2023
Location: United States of America
Companies
Mar-Jac Poultry - Employer , Chick-fil-A - Client , Ōnin Staffing - Labour SupplierAffected
Total individuals affected: 1
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( 1 - Guatemala , Agriculture & livestock , Men )Issues
Occupational Health & Safety , Deaths , Child labourResponse
Response sought: No
Action taken: Mar-Jac said they would undertake an audit with the staffing company to ensure non-repetition. In a statement to the NYT, Chick-fil-A said it was reviewing how it investigates violations at plants. Chick-Fil-A did not respond to the Resource Centre's request for comment in January 2024. Mar-Jac officials did not respond to requests for comment in April 2024 to journalists, but the company issued a statement in July 2023, explaining that it uses “staffing companies” to hire workers due to “an unprecedentedly tight labour market” and relies on them to verify that their hiring is legal.
Source type: News outlet
"Poultry plant blames staffing company for hiring 16-year-old who was killed in workplace accident,"
A Mississippi poultry plant said Wednesday that it had no idea a 16-year-boy who was killed in an on-the-job accident was a minor.
The victim, a Guatemalan immigrant named Duvan Tomas Perez, died July 14 after he became entangled in machinery that he was cleaning, Mar-Jac Poultry said in a statement.
"The tragedy was compounded when we learned that the victim was a minor," the company said.
Mar-Jac Poultry said it relies on staffing companies to fill positions, and it's a condition of their contracts to verify the ages and immigration status of prospective hires with the Department of Homeland Security and through the government's E-Verify electronic system...