Partial Shield From Job Abuse

For decades immigrants have come to this country looking for work. They have taken hard, often dirty jobs. Some have come here illegally and are subject to deportation, and because of that some employers have taken advantage of them.

The law was unclear on whether illegal immigrants were covered by the employee protections taken for granted by legal workers. And few sought legal protection for fear that simply surfacing would put them at risk of deportation by the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Now a California Court of Appeals decision, in a sexual abuse case, has guaranteed these workers the full range of civil and criminal protections in the workplace. The case was brought by a 27-year-old woman from Mexico who charged that she was fired for complaining about her supervisor’s unwanted touching and crude propositions. Her employer argued that since she had presented fake residency documents and was not in the country legally, she was not covered by employment discrimination law.

The appeals court ruling removes that excuse decisively. Those who complain are not protected from deportation--after all, they are here illegally--but INS officials say they are unlikely to stand in courthouse doors to find out who is charging employer abuse or harassment. The extension of workplace rights could even reduce the temptation to hire illegal immigrants, so there are no losers in this ruling--except, of course, the unscrupulous employers who thoroughly deserve the loss.