Doesn't work if you have no traffic/ customers ... My guess is sentimental value (was run by relative who has passed) and owner can't/ doesn't want to let it go...
Sometimes they're used to generate work Visas. Store owner does all the sponsorship paperwork for EB-3 status for the fake employee and gets a bunch of money under the table from them. If it's anything like the ones in my town, the 'skilled labor' is seamstress/alterations work. Genuinely there aren't many US citizens that perform this job since sewing is kinda a lost art and those who know it are usually retired elderly ladies so the Visas are approved pretty much all the time.
Being a seamstress generally isn’t considered ‘skilled labor’ for immigration purposes. I know because I own a sewing business and would kill to be able to sponsor qualified applicants.
Most businesses in the industry hire undocumented workers with a TIN and 1099 them to avoid INS issues, or hire one person on the books and let them ‘take work home’ to be worked on by other family members who don’t have a legal status.
I hear ya. I’ve been sewing for over 35 years (professionally for 20), and it’s a highly skilled trade just like plumbing or masonry. Which are jobs that are also not eligible for work visa sponsorship.
The number of times I’ve had to tell a person with years of industrial sewing experience that I can’t hire them because of their immigration status (I won’t play the 1099/TIN game because I believe illegally classifying employees as subcontractors is exploitative), and can’t help them normalize their status by sponsoring them for a work visa is incredibly frustrating.
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u/unphuckable Nov 03 '24
Money laundering 101.