MONTICELLO - Mark Reasa of Monticello was angry when he opened the mail Wednesday.
In it was a letter from the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD). It said he and other former Shanti Industries employees wouldn't be able to collect checks for two weeks of work this summer.
Reasa and other Shanti employees were hung out to dry when the company closed at the end of June. They didn't get paid for their work, and because the company now is out of the state, the DWD can't help them, said agency liaison Richard Jones.
Jones suggested workers who didn't receive a paycheck contact the United States Department of Labor office in Madison at (608) 441-5221.
Jones said the state's authority in the matter is limited.
"We do not have the authority to subpoena records or employers in other states," he said.
Reasa said he plans to contact the Department of Labor within the next couple of days to file a claim. He said he's angry at the company for the way it treated him.
"This is the way they're treating people who were loyal or stupid enough to come back to work for them," he said.
Shanti Industries' headquarters was in Rancho Santo Margarita, Calif. A phone number for Shanti Industries no longer is in service. Its Web site, shantimetalindustries.com, lists its contact information as being in Bangalore, India.
In June, the company went to court in Green County to force Laidlaw Company to pay for 26,000 boxes of hangers made by the company and kept at the Monticello factory.
Laidlaw agreed to pay Shanti Industries about $50,000 for the hangers. That money was used to pay employees' wages from the past few months before the court case.
The 43 Shanti employees were told by plant manager Jeff Bosen they could come back to work for about two weeks, and then be finished with Laidlaw Company.
Some of the 43 workers went back to work, but others didn't, Reasa said.
"There were 16 or 17 people on third shift and five came back for two weeks," he said. "After the court case they asked, they begged, people to come back to work."
Reasa said the company closed at the end of the month.
However, when the company closed it still owed money to the employees who came back to work.
"They owed me for two weeks of work," he said. "They paid me for some, but they still owe me about $250.
"I had to fight to get some of the money they owed me. It's tough enough to be out of work, but it's even worse when you don't get paid what you're owed."
Reasa said he wasn't alone. Other employees who were owed money filed wage claims with DWD, only to learn earlier this week their claims couldn't be settled.
The letter Reasa received from DWD said the state agency tried to contact Shanti Industries at its Monticello address and its California office but didn't get a response.
The letter, signed by Robert Flippin, labor standards investigator for the DWD, said most wage claims are settled by the Labor Standards Bureau without going to court. Cases that can't be settled are referred to the county district attorney's office.
"Due to the fact the business is closed and the employer is located out of state, neither this office or the courts have jurisdiction to pursue litigation," Flippin told Reasa.
Reasa was mad when he learned Shanti Industries might not have to pay him what it owes.
"I was one of those guys who came into work when I was sick," he said. "I'd come into work another shift if they wanted me to.
"I think this is fraud."
Shanti operated in the approximately 80,000-square-foot facility where Laidlaw Corporation operated for many years in Monticello before closing the plant in late 2006 and moving the company's approximately 37 jobs to China. The Monticello plant was run for a time after that by some local venture capitalists, who found the going too tough to continue. Shanti Industries stepped in after that, buying the plant and its equipment, and eventually entering into an agreement with Laidlaw to produce hangers for the company.
In it was a letter from the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD). It said he and other former Shanti Industries employees wouldn't be able to collect checks for two weeks of work this summer.
Reasa and other Shanti employees were hung out to dry when the company closed at the end of June. They didn't get paid for their work, and because the company now is out of the state, the DWD can't help them, said agency liaison Richard Jones.
Jones suggested workers who didn't receive a paycheck contact the United States Department of Labor office in Madison at (608) 441-5221.
Jones said the state's authority in the matter is limited.
"We do not have the authority to subpoena records or employers in other states," he said.
Reasa said he plans to contact the Department of Labor within the next couple of days to file a claim. He said he's angry at the company for the way it treated him.
"This is the way they're treating people who were loyal or stupid enough to come back to work for them," he said.
Shanti Industries' headquarters was in Rancho Santo Margarita, Calif. A phone number for Shanti Industries no longer is in service. Its Web site, shantimetalindustries.com, lists its contact information as being in Bangalore, India.
In June, the company went to court in Green County to force Laidlaw Company to pay for 26,000 boxes of hangers made by the company and kept at the Monticello factory.
Laidlaw agreed to pay Shanti Industries about $50,000 for the hangers. That money was used to pay employees' wages from the past few months before the court case.
The 43 Shanti employees were told by plant manager Jeff Bosen they could come back to work for about two weeks, and then be finished with Laidlaw Company.
Some of the 43 workers went back to work, but others didn't, Reasa said.
"There were 16 or 17 people on third shift and five came back for two weeks," he said. "After the court case they asked, they begged, people to come back to work."
Reasa said the company closed at the end of the month.
However, when the company closed it still owed money to the employees who came back to work.
"They owed me for two weeks of work," he said. "They paid me for some, but they still owe me about $250.
"I had to fight to get some of the money they owed me. It's tough enough to be out of work, but it's even worse when you don't get paid what you're owed."
Reasa said he wasn't alone. Other employees who were owed money filed wage claims with DWD, only to learn earlier this week their claims couldn't be settled.
The letter Reasa received from DWD said the state agency tried to contact Shanti Industries at its Monticello address and its California office but didn't get a response.
The letter, signed by Robert Flippin, labor standards investigator for the DWD, said most wage claims are settled by the Labor Standards Bureau without going to court. Cases that can't be settled are referred to the county district attorney's office.
"Due to the fact the business is closed and the employer is located out of state, neither this office or the courts have jurisdiction to pursue litigation," Flippin told Reasa.
Reasa was mad when he learned Shanti Industries might not have to pay him what it owes.
"I was one of those guys who came into work when I was sick," he said. "I'd come into work another shift if they wanted me to.
"I think this is fraud."
Shanti operated in the approximately 80,000-square-foot facility where Laidlaw Corporation operated for many years in Monticello before closing the plant in late 2006 and moving the company's approximately 37 jobs to China. The Monticello plant was run for a time after that by some local venture capitalists, who found the going too tough to continue. Shanti Industries stepped in after that, buying the plant and its equipment, and eventually entering into an agreement with Laidlaw to produce hangers for the company.