FW: Another Story About Sun Discrimination

Date: Wednesday, June 26, 2002 9:05 AM

-----Original Message-----
Date: Tuesday, June 25, 2002 2:57 PM

*** H-1B NEWSLETTER ***

Get the Facts on H-1B at
www.ZaZona.com

This article mentions Guy Santiglia's complaint against Sun. This article
fails to mention that there are many others at Sun that are complaining
about the way Sun discriminates against US workers and they have filed
complaints. Guy isn't the lone wolf out there and I hope the press isn't
trying to set him up as one.

The last paragraph is perhaps the most surprising. Tino Serrano at the
Department of Labor is saying that once companies hire H-1Bs they don't have
to show American workers any preference when it comes who gets laid off. The
implication is that you can't dismiss somebody because of their immigration
status but you can fire them if they are expensive American workers. That
quote is so outrageous that I put it on my website at:
http://www.zazona.com/ShameH1B/Quotes.htm

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/06/25/BU244728.DTL

Sun accused of worker discrimination
U.S. citizen employee says he was canned in favor of foreigners
Benjamin Pimentel, Chronicle Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 25, 2002
Š2002 San Francisco Chronicle.

URL:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/06/25/BU244728.DTL

The U.S. government is looking into Sun Microsystems' hiring practices after
an ex-employee filed complaints alleging that the Santa Clara firm
discriminates against American citizens in favor of foreign workers on H1-B
visas.

The technology firm said the U.S. Department of Justice recently requested
information from Sun after former employee Guy Santiglia accused the company
of bias against U.S. citizens when it laid off 3,900 workers late last year.

Santiglia, who was among those dismissed, had also filed a complaint with
the U.S. Department of Labor.

He declined to elaborate on his complaints but said the federal agencies
"are looking into what happened to see if there was any preference" for
foreign workers in Sun's layoffs.

The Department of Justice could not be reached for comment. Tino Serrano,

spokesman for the Department of Labor, said that Sun has been under
investigation since March, but he declined to elaborate.

Sun spokeswoman Diane Carlini said the company is cooperating with the
federal agencies.

But she denied that the company uses citizenship status as a basis for
cutting jobs.

"It is not a criterion for hiring or firing. He is basically saying we
should have found him a job because he is a citizen, and that in itself is
discriminatory."

About 5 percent of Sun's 39,000 employees have temporary work visas, she
said.

But Santiglia said the company has continued to apply for foreigner worker
visas despite Sun's policy of cutting jobs.

"To me it is crazy that they can apply for thousands of visas in 2001 and
lay off 4,000 workers," he said.

Carlini said Sun typically applies for H1-B visas for current employees
whose work permits are expiring or for future need for foreign staff.

Serrano of the Department of Labor said that employers who hire foreign
workers must prove that there are no domestic workers who could fill their
positions. But once the foreigners are hired, employers cannot choose to
dismiss them because of their immigration status.

"It has to be some yardstick other than that they are H1-B workers," he
said.

E-mail Benjamin Pimentel at bpimentel@sfchronicle.com.

Š2002 San Francisco Chronicle. Page B - 1

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