The priest asked Parra if she drank alcohol, had ever “stolen anything” or been caught speeding, she said. He also wanted to know “if I was late to my employment, if I did anything to harm my employer, and if I had any bad intentions towards my employment,” she added.
Investigator Raquel Alfaro testified that she heard from multiple workers who took part in the confessions and that “they found it odd because the priest was asking questions regarding their loyalty to the employer and to the business.” An unnamed worker told an investigator that the manager, Alejandro Rodriguez, “would not let us sit down and eat,” which led to some workers hiding in the walk-in refrigerator for a meal.
Owners also tried to dissuade staff members from cooperating with the DOL investigation by threatening to terminate them and falsely telling workers that the investigation was over and that the DOL was reporting employees “to the immigration authorities.”