"Jury finds Michigan labor contractor guilty in human trafficking trial"

A federal jury has found Michigan labor contractor Purpose Point Harvesting guilty of exploiting a group of Guatemalan farmworkers in a forced labor scheme that violated both federal and state laws...

...major win for advocates fighting against abuses in the H-2A visa program, which allows U.S. employers to hire foreign agricultural workers for temporary jobs.

The case centered on allegations that the workers were lured to Michigan with promises of legal employment and fair wages, only to be subjected to grueling hours, withheld pay, and threats of retaliation...

The plaintiffs, who came from a poor mountainous region in Guatemala, alleged they were charged illegal recruitment fees of $2,500 each, had their passports taken, and were forced to work from 3 a.m. to 10 p.m. with limited access to medical care. When they complained, they were threatened with deportation or reported to immigration authorities...

The outcome is seen as a victory in holding labor contractors accountable under the H-2A visa system, which ties workers to individual employers and has been widely criticized for enabling abuse with little oversight…

“This is the tip of the iceberg,” Hendricks told Metro Times in May. “There are hundreds of thousands of workers like this.”…