Marriott class action claims hotelier exploits visa program for labor

Marriott class action overview: 

• Who: Marriott International is facing a class action lawsuit related to its J-1 Visa Internship Program at the St. Regis Hotel in Aspen, Colorado. 
• Why: The lawsuit claims the Marriott Visa program was a fraudulent internship program used to gain cheap labor that also violated human trafficking laws.
• Where: The Marriott visa class action was filed in federal court in Colorado after it was initially filed in Pitkin County state court.

Marriott International is facing a class action lawsuit claiming that its international culinary internship program at the St. Regis Hotel in Aspen, Colorado, did not fulfill its promises and instead was used to gain cheaper labor.

The J-1 Visa Internship Program required interns to pay $3,900 to join a program that promised aspiring chefs would work in phases in the kitchen alongside the executive chef while learning the full kitchen operations.

Instead, Plaintiff Daniel Esteban Camas Lopez claims that he worked extensive hours at a sauté station preparing, cooking, and plating the food and then passing it on to servers without reviews or interaction with the executive chef.

Lopez was paid $14 per hour for regular hours and $21 per hour for overtime between May 6, 2021 and July 9, 2021 while other workers in the culinary department who were not interns or trainees were paid $17.50 per hour for regular hours and time and half for overtime,the Marriott visa class action says.

Plaintiff looks to move case from Colorado state court to federal court

The Marriott class action was first filed in Colorado state court in Pitkin County, but Lopez is now requesting it be moved to U.S. District Court in Colorado.

Lopez said he worked 48-hour weeks or more, instead of the promised 32- to 40-hour weeks and was told that his hours and responsibilities could be reduced in August when staffing levels changed.

Lopez worked 374 regular hours and 135 overtime hours before leaving the program with 18 weeks remaining, he said. He is asking for lost wages for the 18 weeks as well as compensation for his lower pay than other kitchen staff.

Marriott International Inc. and the Office of the Attorney General of the State of New York reached a now-closed 2022 settlement ending a class action lawsuit against the hotel company, claiming it did not provide a proper employee severance package at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel when employees were placed on furlough and then laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Have you ever worked for a Marriott hotel? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Scott J. Ferrell of Pacific Trial Attorneys APC.

The Sephora eavesdropping class action lawsuit is Byars, et al. v. Sephora USA Inc., Case No. 5:23-cv-00883, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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