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Clothing Marketers Deny Knowledge of Abuses: California Labor Commissioner Roberta Mendonca said her office’s investigation into illicit home-sewing shops so far has found no evidence that Guess Inc. or the other clothing marketers linked to the probe realized that their products were being made illegally. But she said the state is seeking fines totaling $104,500 from three contractors who illegally employed home workers to sew garments for Guess or other clothing marketers. The biggest fines, totaling $66,000, are being sought from Kelly Sportswear of El Monte, but the firm is expected to appeal the state’s citations. A spokesman for UNITE, the garment industry union, said Guess should have known that its contractors were operating illegally because the company is required to monitor its contractors.