Koreatown Workers Speak Out so That Others May Benefit

A tearful but determined Koreatown waitress Saturday urged local, state and federal officials to enforce labor laws with vigilance so that other restaurant workers will be spared her pain.

During an unprecedented meeting between authorities and Koreatown restaurant workers who spoke about their wages and working conditions, Jung Hee Lee said that she suffered a debilitating back injury while on the job.

The Saturday session, attended by about 200 people, was organized by Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates, the only Asian American group devoted to helping low-income immigrant workers in Southern California. Better known by its acronym KIWA, the group has waged a lengthy campaign to improve wages and working conditions at Koreatown restaurants, where Koreans and Latinos work side by side.

Lee, 33, was among five workers who shared their stories.

“The floor near the entrance to the kitchen was covered with a cardboard box, not a mat,” she said in Korean, her words translated into English and Spanish. “Within a few hours, the box got soaked with water and grease, and it became slippery. When waitresses moved quickly in and out of the kitchen with heavy trays, there were a lot of slips and falls.”

She said the injury left her unemployed, without pay, for one year because her employer did not carry worker’s compensation insurance at the time.

“I couldn’t cook for my two young children or give them baths,” Lee said. “I had to ask them to do things for me instead. I felt like I could not fulfill my duties as a mother and as a wife.”

Outside the meeting, about two dozen restaurant owners and their supporters picketed.

“KIWA is intimidating and creating unnecessary hassles to employers in Koreatown,” said Daniel Oh of the new Korean Restaurant Owners Coalition. He accused the group of trying to portray all Koreatown restaurant owners as “criminals.”

Inside the Mid-Wilshire union hall, speakers said that countless workers do not receive minimum wage or overtime and that they are often mistreated.

One worker, Keun Hae Song, said she was paid $700 a month for working eight to 12 hours a day, six days a week.

Another, Kyung Park, 38, said, “I went home every day with a new bruise in my heart because of all the hurtful things that happened at work.”

Once, during an exceptionally busy lunch hour, her employer became upset when she did not respond to his bantering.

“ ‘How dare you treat me like that?’ ” she quoted the employer as saying. “ ‘You should know your place.’ ”

Koreans own about 300 restaurants and cafes in the Koreatown area, employing nearly 2,000 workers--a third are non-Koreans, mostly Latinos.

In a sweep of 43 randomly picked restaurants between March and May, federal investigators uncovered rampant violations of minimum wage and overtime laws, according to the U.S. Labor Department.

The probes by the agency’s wage and hour division were prompted by workers’ complaints. Federal laws require that workers be paid at least 1 1/2 times their hourly wage for working in excess of 40 hours a week. In California, the minimum wage is $5.75 an hour.

Francisco Arana said he was hired to wash dishes and clean but often had to help with other duties because his employer was short-handed.

“When I started working, they promised me $40 a day,” Arana said. “They never paid me on the day that they were supposed to. Once, they paid me a week late. I couldn’t pay the rent, and I was charged an extra $80.”

Officials said they were troubled by what they heard and would use the information to push for better compliance.

“It’s horrifying,” said Los Angeles City Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg. “I was sitting there thinking this is another century [they’re describing].”

State Labor Commissioner Jose Millan said he has made it clear to Koreatown restaurant owners that they have “to clean up soon” or face the consequences of state action.

Millan said workers are entitled to receive medical attention at state expense, whether or not their employer carries worker’s compensation insurance. The state, in turn, seeks reimbursement from the employer.

Chuck Striegel, Los Angeles deputy district director of the federal wage and hour division, said he sees improvement.

“It’s at least half better than when we started the investigation last year,” he said, adding that this has been an educational process for many Koreatown restaurant owners.