<p>I'm sure most summer learning programs in the U.S. are entirely legitimate, but this one seems to have required students to work long hours in low-paying manual labor:
[quote]
Hundreds of foreign students, waving their fists and shouting defiantly in many languages, walked off their jobs on Wednesday at a plant here that packs Hersheys chocolates, saying a summer program that was supposed to be a cultural exchange had instead turned them into underpaid labor.
<p>This incident shows it's always a good idea to get references about any program, and if possible check with past participants as the the quality of the opportunities offered.</p>
<p>This is widespread. All these programs all around the world advertising for an international experience and worldwide peace, saving the environment… you pay $4000 and all you do is work on a farm all day for peanuts.</p>
<p>The problem isn’t with the program. The problem is with this particular employer. </p>
<p>Work and Travel is actually a government-sponsored program and it’s a pretty good one. Often, participants work in hotels, restaurants, amusement parks and casinos: vacation-related places that need extra labor over the summer. At the end of the program, students have a full month to travel. </p>
<p>I’ve known quite a few students who did it, and were so pleased with their experience, they came back for a second summer. Many of them worked more than one job, and those that I met not only made enough to pay their costs, but also to bring home what for them was a significant amount of money.</p>
<p>Well said Kaitliamom. There are some great international workers, most notably in hospitality jobs. These workers gain valuable experience and offer superb service. Most are well educated and seeking to add some experience in the US for the future prospects.</p>
<p>Wrong. The Govt. only authorizes certain groups to process visa applications and such. </p>
<p>Some of these organizations, although organized as non-profits, are anything but. Just look at the fees quoted in the article. One should really look at the tax returns filed for CET to see how much Rick Anaya is getting paid, for example. </p>
<p>I was especially disappointed to see the “pass the buck” nature of the responses. everyone involved seemed to blame someone else. Was no one checking? No follow up? Pretty obviously not, once the payments were received.</p>
<p>Edit: this is from the CETUSA website:</p>
<p>Your International Employees</p>
<pre><code>* Can work up to 4 months
Are highly motivated to work and gain experience
Flourish in a diverse, multi-cultural environment
Are bilingual and often multilingual
Work for the same pay as U.S. citizens in similar positions
Pay federal and state taxes but are exempt from paying Social Security, Medicare and Federal Unemployment Taxes
Have their own medical insurance coverage provided by CETUSA
</code></pre>
<p>J-1 visa employees work in a variety of diverse environments. These include: amusement and theme parks, hotels, restaurants, seafood processing, hospitality, landscaping, national parks and campgrounds, in lifeguard positions and in factory/production work.</p>
<p>There are many organizations that do Work and Travel - some are more expensive than others. I known 2 students who paid less than $1,500 just last year. </p>
<p>As to the non-profit nature of some of them, let’s get real. Harvard is non-profit too and plenty pay over $50K to attend it. </p>
<p>But I agree that in this Hershey case, the whole situation is a scandal.</p>
<p>The $4K - $6K price quoted in the article actually sounds fair to me. I am saying that because seven years ago the standard cost of a year-long high school study abroad program was $6K. That included round-trip airfare, 9 months of health insurance, visa paperwork, placement with a host family and a monthly “are you doing okay?” check-up phone call from the organization while students were abroad. Neither host family nor high school received any remuneration from the program fees. </p>
<p>Subtract 5 months of health insurance, replace a host family placement with a job placement and add seven year’s worth of inflation, and $4K actually sounds like a bargain!</p>
<p>The problem is that after all the fees they had to pay to get visas and travel to the US, they can’t even break even with the money they earn. If you set up a travel abroad program, the students shouldn’t lose money in addition to what they pay for the program!</p>
<p>Do you mean W & T students in this particular instance? Or W & T students in general? I’ve known several W&T participants and none of them had a problem bringing home money even after traveling a bit after their program. Of course, the students I knew weren’t working in a chocolate factory – most were after service jobs where they got tips.</p>
<p>For a company like Hersheys, I can see them wanting to getting involved in a program where students work in Hershey Park like the way you have foreigners in EPCOT. Why in their right minds would they get these people to work in a factory? If Hersheys is pinching pennies, wouldn’t they just have the kisses made overseas in the first place and shipped it in than get a bunch of students who are trying to learn English? </p>
<p>In general is there such a shortage of US students who’ll work at these wages in the seasonal jobs that we need to get them from overseas?</p>
<p>“In general is there such a shortage of US students who’ll work at these wages in the seasonal jobs that we need to get them from overseas?”</p>
<p>Perhaps not now. But there was a shortage of hotel and amusement park workers before the economy tanked. These aren’t very fun jobs - and they’re physically taxing.</p>
<p>There’s not many students who will commute to work far away from where they go to school. I’m going to take a guess that there aren’t any colleges in Hershey. Further, jobs which involve a lot of physical labor or discomfort usually pay more than minimum wage. Just the market wage.</p>
<p>In Colorado, I am used to seeing foreign seasonal workers at the ski resorts. I mean… who wouldn’t want to spend a season being a ski bum. What surprised me though were the number of foreign student workers I saw on a road trip this summer working at jobs typically taken by college or high school age students. </p>
<p>We drove from Boulder, CO to Door Country, WI. I’m not shy about talking to people, so I learned that the two guys at the Subway in Keystone, SD were from Romania. Our waiter at the restaurant in Bad Lands National Park was from Hungary. I forget where the Wall Drug ice cream girls were from but suffice it say they were neither local nor were they the typical immigrant workers (Mexican) that you see in much of the West. At the Piggly Wiggly in Sister Bay, WI pretty much every checker/stocker/bagger was from Eastern Europe. I had a nice conversation with a young guy from Slovenia (he said that I was the 1st American he had met that actually knew where Slovenia was). I asked him why he was doing this job and he said rather derisively that Americans were too lazy to take this sort of job. Uh huh… I didn’t want to tell him that these jobs are often unionized (at least for the checkers) and that they are usually fairly well paying jobs. I know that in Boulder, these jobs are held either by adults or college students at CU, though the baggers are usually high school students.</p>
<p>So why are these student workers being funneled into these jobs? The Black Hills are a bit remote as are the Bad Lands, but I have a hard time believing that there are not local workers who need jobs in Door Country, WI or Wall, SD. Are these kids being paid less than a typical American worker? Good God! Are they paying for that privilege? I know our Hungarian server said that he really didn’t like it in the Bad Lands. He had come to the US to travel and learn about our country. His friend got put in a job in Miami (what they dont have enough workers in Florida?) and she was apparently having a grand old time.
I felt for the guy. I LOVED SD and can’t wait to go back, but if you didn’t have a car, you would be stuck out on the prairie. Perhaps, though, this is the quintessential American experience.</p>
<p>It goes to show you really need to check the validity of these exchange companies. My family and I are hosting this year and were pleased at how seriously the organization took the background checks- every room, every family member, neighbor personally seen and interviewed.</p>