US dream lost in packed dorms, stink of stale food
When Kurian David sold his home, he believed he was doing so to seek a better life in the US for him and his family He was promised good wages, decent accommodation, a green card and permanent residency for him, his wife and two sons.
He paid $20,000 (Rs 8 lakh) in exchange for a job at the Signal International shipyard in Orange, Texas.
When he arrived at the facility there was no opportunity for his dreams to come to fruition. Instead, he lived in a room with 23 other men, sleeping in bunk beds and sharing two bathrooms. David, 41, said he worked 10-hour days in the hull of a ship where he inhaled fumes and smoke. He was served stale bread for breakfast and forced to eat lunches left in the elements for hours.
When he and fellow workers at the plant complained, they were told they would be deported, a paralyzing possibility because of the debt he incurred getting the job.
"I decided to gamble everything," David said. "We felt bonded. We felt like we were in prison. None the less, we ate their rotten food and stayed in their degrading conditions because they promised us green cards."
David is one of about 120 workers brought to the US from India to work for Signal International in their two shipyards who walked off the job last week in protest of the conditions.
To read the full article, click here...
To read the ePaper, visit: http://epaper.hindustantimes.com
He paid $20,000 (Rs 8 lakh) in exchange for a job at the Signal International shipyard in Orange, Texas.
When he arrived at the facility there was no opportunity for his dreams to come to fruition. Instead, he lived in a room with 23 other men, sleeping in bunk beds and sharing two bathrooms. David, 41, said he worked 10-hour days in the hull of a ship where he inhaled fumes and smoke. He was served stale bread for breakfast and forced to eat lunches left in the elements for hours.
When he and fellow workers at the plant complained, they were told they would be deported, a paralyzing possibility because of the debt he incurred getting the job.
"I decided to gamble everything," David said. "We felt bonded. We felt like we were in prison. None the less, we ate their rotten food and stayed in their degrading conditions because they promised us green cards."
David is one of about 120 workers brought to the US from India to work for Signal International in their two shipyards who walked off the job last week in protest of the conditions.
To read the full article, click here...
To read the ePaper, visit: http://epaper.hindustantimes.com
Labels: bunk beds, India, Kurian David, Signal International shipyard, stink of stale food, US
posted by PressMart Team at
11:42 AM
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