Bob Collins
The Twins and the company that runs the concessions at Target Field have bused in workers from Chicago and Milwaukee to fill the jobs at the concession stands.
The imports were discovered when David Brauer hit the concession stand Friday night.
Target Field vendor told me 2 busloads of workers up from Chicago for 2 games. Not enuf locals? Know anything @mnnoc @votegriffin? #mntwins
— David Brauer (@dbrauer) April 16, 2016
Confirmed Chicago connection with 2nd group of Windy City concessionaires at Target Field. “Short-handed,” one said of the locals. #mntwins
— David Brauer (@dbrauer) April 16, 2016
So much for a publicly financed stadium providing jobs for the locals?
The group Neighborhoods Organizing for Change volunteered to hold a job fair to fill the part-time gigs.
Why are @Twins busing in workers from Chicago instead of paying last yr workers a living wage? More on @kare11 at 5. pic.twitter.com/oq0gR26XBO
— MN NOC (@mnnoc) April 17, 2016
Yesterday KARE 11 investigated the story on Brauer’s tip and found about 80 out-of-town workers were not only bused in, but were put up in hotels, and reimbursed for travel time.
“We’re seeing we don’t have the supply that we don’t have in the past,” a spokesman for Delaware North, the company with whom the Twins contract to provide concessions at Target Field.
“The notion they have to go to Chicago, Green Bay or Milwaukee when there are people who are on West Broadway is absolutely outrageous,” Mike Griffin, with Neighborhoods Organizing for Change, told KARE.
The president of the Twins, Dave St. Peter, joined in, saying there are plenty of part-time jobs for the locals who want them.
Agreed. Plenty of ballpark jobs available for Minnesotans. https://t.co/NeIrcHMReE https://t.co/GQtVojHbzy
— Dave St. Peter (@TwinsPrez) April 18, 2016
At the conclusion of last season, Target Field part-time employees rallied outside the stadium, claiming they often had to stand in long lines just to find out if they were scheduled to work, and were paid with debit cards carrying high fees.
[Update 1:16 p.m. ] The Minnesota Ballpark Authority notes that the coming job fair will be the 6th. And after last September’s protest the board discussed the temporary worker shortage with Delaware North, and the temporary staffing agencies were instructed to pay concession workers who were told to report earlier than necessary. The agencies also agreed to offer direct deposit or a paper check for the wages earned at Target Field.
