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The Straight Story

(48,121 posts)
Fri Jan 27, 2012, 12:26 PM Jan 2012

Woman Claims Bank Worker Enslaved Her

Woman Claims Bank Worker Enslaved Her

WASHINGTON (CN) - A Bolivian woman claims a World Bank employee enslaved her after luring her to the United States to work as a nanny.
Virginia Carazani sued Emma Zegarra in Federal Court, alleging human trafficking, slavery and breach of contract.

Carazani claims Zegarra gave her a contract "which promised reasonable working conditions and decent pay," but when she got here, Zegarra "completely disregarded the contract" and forced her "to work around the clock, seven days a week" for absolutely nothing.

Carazani, 35, Zegarra, of Vienna, Va., first employed her in Bolivia, paying her $100 a month to care for her two children and do household chores.

In 2006, Zegarra took a job with the World Bank, and promised Carazani $7 an hour and a five-day work week with health insurance for her and her young son, plus overtime and sick leave if she would move to the United States to work for the family, according to the complaint.

...

"In an effort to terrify Ms. Carazani, the defendant told Ms. Carazani that a device in her World Bank office allowed Zegarra to listen to Ms. Carazani's phone conversations in the home," the complaint states. "The belief that all of her telephone calls were monitored prevented Ms. Carazani from telling her family about the abuse she was suffering in the United States. By instilling fear in Ms. Carazani, the Defendant kept Ms. Carazani isolated from the outside world. Ms. Carazani was unable to tell anyone she was being held in forced labor."

http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/01/27/43401.htm

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Woman Claims Bank Worker Enslaved Her (Original Post) The Straight Story Jan 2012 OP
Even the "good offer" was sub-minimum wage obamanut2012 Jan 2012 #1
She was doing a job that Americans won't do, though. Romulox Jan 2012 #2
hopefully the publicity will cause Zegarra to lose her cushy world bank job... book_worm Jan 2012 #3
I think this happens a lot. I knew a family who worked at World Bank Voice for Peace Jan 2012 #4

obamanut2012

(25,911 posts)
1. Even the "good offer" was sub-minimum wage
Fri Jan 27, 2012, 12:33 PM
Jan 2012

This enslaving of "domestics" from other countries seem to happen alot. There's a spotlight on human trafficking re: the sex industry, but not on the housekeeping/nanny industries.

 

Voice for Peace

(13,141 posts)
4. I think this happens a lot. I knew a family who worked at World Bank
Fri Jan 27, 2012, 01:55 PM
Jan 2012

and they had done exact same thing -- taken away the woman's passport so that she was a virtual prisoner.

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