Winery owned by Trump’s son trying to hire 23 foreign guest workers: petition

A winery owned by President Trump’s son, Eric Trump, is reportedly trying to gain permission to hire 23 foreign guest workers under the federal H-2 visa program.

BuzzFeed News, citing a petition published by Department of Labor on Monday, reported that Trump Winery is seeking the employees through the program, one that gives U.S. employers the opportunity to temporarily employ foreign workers as long as qualified American workers do not want the jobs.

{mosads}The work would run from mid-March to late October and compensate the employees at $12.25 per hour. 

More than 100,000 foreign individuals have annually entered the U.S. under the federal H-2 visa program since 2003, BuzzFeed reported.

The news outlet additionally noted that businesses owned by the Trump Organization or bearing the “Trump” name have attempted to hire 600 foreign guest workers since June 2015, when he launched his presidential campaign. The individuals have worked as servers and house cleaners at venues such as Trump’s golf courses. 

The Trump Winery, which is also known as Trump Vineyard Estates, LLC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BuzzFeed. The White House did not immediately return a request for comment from The Hill.

The winery’s website includes a disclaimer that it is a “registered trade name of Eric Trump Wine Manufacturing LLC, which is not owned, managed, or affiliated with Donald J. Trump or any of his affiliates.”

BuzzFeed notes in its report that the business was given to his son in 2012. Though Trump told reporters he owned the winery in 2017. 

Companies owned by Trump have never been accused of mistreating H-2 employees. But a 2015 investigation from BuzzFeed News found that the program has been abused by employers. For example, many Americans have reportedly been denied jobs at companies who preferred to hire foreign guest workers.

The report about the Trump Winery’s attempt to hire foreign guest workers comes after the Trump National Golf Club in Westchester County, New York, abruptly fired about a dozen employees because they were found to have been living in the U.S. illegally.

The Washington Post reported on Saturday that the step was made after the Trump company conducted an audit of the individuals’ immigration documents.