Irvine Garment Contractor Raided

In a sunset raid Tuesday, federal and state agents shut down a garment contractor who allegedly has been locking workers overnight in a windowless embroidery room.

Government officials said several immigrant employees--including at least one underage worker--toiled from about 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. at Hi-Tech Expression on Mitchell in an industrial park near John Wayne Airport.

Investigators said the shop’s owner, Eunchang Lee of Irvine, locked the doors from the outside every night, posing a serious safety risk to the workers. Lee’s father would unlock the doors in the morning.

Cal/OSHA spokesman Rick Rice, who joined the raid, said the safety agency was expected to cite the company this week for failing to provide adequate exits.

In addition, Lee was cited for lacking workers’ compensation insurance, failing to register as a garment contractor and employing a minor without a work permit. Agents confiscated more than 200 pieces of clothing in Tuesday’s raid, including Nike T-shirts and numerous brand-name hats.

The workers told officials they voluntarily came and went from their jobs, but some said they had complained to the owner about the danger of working behind locked doors.

Adalberto Flores, 20, who has worked at Hi-Tech Expression for two years, said: “I think they locked the doors because they thought the employees were stealing many things. But nobody steals anything, and it’s not right to leave us there.”

Indeed, Lee, 35, told investigators and The Times that he locked the doors to protect his merchandise. He stated that in an emergency, workers could force open an alarm-wired rear door that would lead them to an enclosed warehouse area, where they could lift up a roll-up door to get outside.

Lee said about a dozen people worked the day shift and two to four employees worked the night shift embroidering hats and clothing on computerized machines.

“In case of fire, they can go out any time,” he said.

Brian Taverner, the federal wage and hour investigator who led the multi-agency raid, said it would take several minutes for workers to get out--minutes that could be crucial in an emergency.

“I can see where he’s saying that he wants to protect the merchandise,” he said, “but the safety of employees should be considered.”

A dozen agents descended on the shop at 5:45 p.m. between the first and second shifts, but Lee was not there.

He was called and arrived an hour later, where he was met by a swarm of agents and media. Sometime later, Lee’s mother arrived, arguing with agents and pleading that her family had tried to run a clean business.

The raid Tuesday was part of the Targeted Industries Partnership Program, a joint federal and state project to curb abuses in the garment and agricultural industries.

Although the incident was not as serious as last year’s El Monte case, in which agents discovered 72 Thai workers held in virtual slavery, Taverner said he had never seen a case of garment workers willingly being locked in overnight.

State and federal agents said they were shocked to find such a case in Irvine. In more than three years of sweeping Southern California’s garment industry, this was the first visit to a contractor there.

“It shows us the garment industry is more hidden and widespread than we think,” Taverner said.

According to records obtained by the state, the workers’ compensation carrier for Hi-Tech Expression canceled the policy in late December, citing the locked doors as the reason.

Because Lee did not currently have workers’ compensation insurance, state officials fined him $15,000. Also, Lee was fined $500 for employing a 17-year-old worker who did not have a proper work permit, and $1,500 for failing to register as a garment contractor, according to David Dorame, a deputy labor commissioner.

Dorame said interviews with employees and a quick examination of payroll check stubs suggested Lee could also be fined for minimum-wage and overtime-pay violations. Dorame said labor investigators would subpoena all payroll records as well as other paperwork on customer orders.

Lee said he paid workers minimum wage or higher, and that he provided overtime wages. He said he was unaware of employing a minor, and he did not know he had to register as a contractor.

Lee said he has been in business for six years in the tranquil industrial park. Lee said he grosses up to $450,000 a year and has 40 to 50 customers.

Federal and state officials had been staking out Lee’s shop since December, recording the times when Lee locked the doors and shut out the lights at the front entrance. Lee’s father, who starts the morning shift, would come in around 6 to reopen the doors.

Employees at Hi-Tech said they had grown accustomed to their condition. Some workers said they were generally treated well and paid regularly.

“They pay us on time,” Alejandro Estrado told a federal investigator who was interviewing him.

On Tuesday, regulars at Powerhouse Christian Fellowship, a charismatic church located next door to Hi-Tech Expression, seemed unaware of what was happening to their neighbor. But some came to Lee’s defense.

“Those are good people,” said Richard Nadelson, a regular worshiper. “I’ve been coming here for more than six years, and I have never seen any wrongdoing there.”

Lee declined to say what he would do next. But his father, Young Hwa Lee, 69, sighed as he watched the commotion surrounding the shop, which his son had started with a family loan.

Then the father said: “Maybe it is for time for us to get out of this business.”