Petersburg motels owners taking advantage of workers, a P-I investigation finds
PETERSBURG—Back in July when we found out that a string of motels had been shut down by the city due to health and safety violations, we began investigating the impact of these motel closures. We found that not only were more people homeless as a result, but that the city was also making it more difficult for those who stayed in motels long-term, suddenly enforcing a city code that only allowed 30-days stays. We launched a series called "Links in the Chain," and published parts one, two, and three last year.
That investigation lead us to diving into how motels were conducting their businesses, where we uncovered multiple motel owners who were violating labor laws in Part 4 of this series.
Which motels are involved and what are they doing?
Two owners, Niraj Jani and Sunny Anand, have been grossly underpaying their workers.
Jani owns Best Inn and Flagship Inn. Workers, who are hired to live and work at the motel, only get $15 to $25 a day. They work there 7 days a week. Some employees labor over 80 hours a week, with no overtime pay.
Anand owns Royal Inn and American Inn. Workers start off at $50 a week, with increasing pay the longer they work there. Employees work six days a week.
Sources say other motels in Petersburg also use the same practices.
How are motel owners able to exploit their workers?
People who work for the motels often are desperate for housing and in need of employment. They are able to be exploited because they have few options for housing and/ or work. Afraid to speak out for fear of getting kicked out of their room, many choose to remain silent as misconduct proliferates. The former worker we featured in our investigation was a World-Guinness record holder who became homeless after he and his ex-fiancé split. Another lost her home in a fire.
Will justice be served for the workers?
One former Best Inn employee is attempting to bring charges to Jani for the tens of thousands of dollars he's owed in back pay.
Read more about these motel workers, their stories, and what they've had to go through in our most recent investigative piece here.
Also, you can read parts 1-3 here:
Read Part 1 here:Petersburg motels have dealt with code violations for years. As the city shuts them down, homelessness escalates.
Read Part 2 here:‘A fresh can of nowhere to go’: Health and stability stumble with fewer motel rooms for those on the edge
Read Part 3 here:‘A really nasty storm:’ As city enforces 30-day rule, some who have lived in motels for years have no stability
Joyce Chu, an award-winning investigative journalist, is the Social Justice Watchdog Reporter for The Progress Index. Contact her with comments, concerns, or story-tips at Jchu1@gannett.com or on Twitter @joyce_speaks.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Petersburg motels owners could be breaking labor laws, an investigation
