Support for LAist comes from
Made of L.A.
Stay Connected

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Your Favorite American Apparel T-Shirt Was Possibly Stitched by an Undocumented Worker

LegalizeLA_American_Apparel.jpg
Photo by Melle Music via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr
Support your source for local news!
The local news you read here every day is crafted for you, but right now, we need your help to keep it going. In these uncertain times, your support is even more important. Today, put a dollar value on the trustworthy reporting you rely on all year long. We can't hold those in power accountable and uplift voices from the community without your partnership. Thank you.

While it might not be surprising that American Apparel has made the headlines once again for their business practices, it is a touch ironic that the company who is behind the "Legalize L.A." movement for immigration reform revealed today "that the government has found that 1,800 of its employees are either illegally working in the U.S. or potentially illegal to work," according to USA Today.

Representing about one-third of the LA-based clothing company's workforce, the 1,800 are divided into two camps: 1,600 who were identified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as being unauthorized to work, and 200 for whom their status could not be verified. American Apparel says "it was not found to have willingly hired illegal workers."

The fate of the employees who cannot provide proof of eligibility to work is to lose their jobs with American Apparel, however, the investigation "led to no mass arrest or deportation of employees."

Most Read