Serious questions about BP clean-up workers. Has anyone heard answers to these??

[skip fox]

--Where do they come from? Have they worked for BP for some time, or is BP "collecting" a work-force from ManPower agencies?

--How many are making merely minimum wage.

--How can BP keep them from talking (unless they hold something more than a job over them).

--How many are undocumented aliens?

--Why won't BP use volunteers since it takes less than 4 hours to train them? See story at DU link:

shttp://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4433811


Has anyone heard answers to any of these??

[TheWraith]

1. A few answers I can offer.

--Where do they come from? Have they worked for BP for some time, or is BP "collecting" a work-force from ManPower agencies?

I can't speak to all of them, but I did see listings looking to hire cleanup workers for temporary jobs, so some or possibly most of them come off the street.

--How many are making merely minimum wage.

Not the ones I was seeing advertised for--they're actually making a ton of money. Mind you it was for 12-14 hour days, 6 days a week, but the job listings were for $1000 to $1300 per week. Of course this required special certification for HAZMAT, which took like a week-long class that they'd give you if you got the job, but still.

--Why won't BP use volunteer since it takes less than 4 hours to train them? See story at DU link:

It takes a shitload more time than 4 hours to train these people.

[skip fox]

4. I seem to remember a report that the beach clean-up employees took less than 1/2 day to train.

But that was on early reports.

[AndyA]

2. This is what I've heard...

It comes from M$M, Olbermann, Maddow, etc., so some sources are better than others.

I heard a lot of the clean up workers are from the local area, commercial fishermen, etc., and they took the job because there's nothing else for them to do right now.

They signed a confidentiality agreement that would expose them to a lawsuit from BP if they violated the agreement. Plus, they would lose their clean up job, which is all there is if you don't leave the area.

I think most are making better than minimum wage, although I don't recall an exact figure (shades of Tony Hayward!)

I can't answer your questions about volunteers or aliens.

[Cresent City Kid]

3. I've only heard this on the TV news so take with a grain of salt

Some of the clean up workers are the out of work fishermen from the region. They get the double whammy of losing their way of life and toxic exposure to oil and dispersants.

[Octafish]

5. BP bussed off a bunch after they refused to take a mandatory Drug Test.

They also gave survivors of Deepwater Horizon drug tests before allowing them to return to shore.

A company's got to have standards, ya know.