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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Business
Steven Greenhouse in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Building Dignity: can a code of conduct stop abuse of US construction workers?

Construction workers participate in the Dignity and Respect March in June 2022.
Construction workers participate in the Dignity and Respect March in June 2022. Photograph: Uche Iroegbu/Courtesy of CTUL

After putting up a new interior wall for a six-story dorm for University of Minnesota students, Ivan Gonzalez confessed to some problems with a job that he, along with dozens of other immigrant workers, were rushing to finish.

Inside a second-floor dorm room-to-be, Gonzalez said he typically worked 10-hour days, six days a week doing drywall, and was paid $220 a day, often in cash. “There’s no overtime pay, no benefits,” Gonzalez said, noting he sometimes worked 13-hour days.

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