Since migrating to the United States nearly two decades ago, Patricia Martinez, now 55, and a mother of two adult children, found a livelihood working through staffing agencies. Though some days felt heavier than others, she was grateful to have a job even if it meant earning the minimum wage.
But once at Superior Staffing — a temporary employment and staffing agency based in Elmhurst — Martinez alleges that she experienced mistreatment at the company she was assigned to, and a sudden pay cut at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in November 2020.
Martinez said she began speaking up about the alleged mistreatment and shortly after sought legal counsel when she said she got a call in June 2021 from the staffing agency telling her her services were no longer needed. Ana Diaz Rivas, 40, echoed Martinez’s claims after her wage was also lowered and she was denied work without notice, she said.
“When they fired me, they didn’t give me a reason even when I asked. I knew this was wrong, and I wanted to know if I had any rights,” Martinez said.
On Aug. 23, the two women filed a class action lawsuit against Superior Staffing and its client company FAREVA Morton Grove, a cosmetic and hygiene manufacturing company, alleging wage theft and multiple violations of the Illinois Day and Temporary Labor Services Act.
According to the lawsuit, which could cover at least 100 similarly affected workers, Martinez and Diaz Rivas had their wages lowered without receiving the legally required...
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