"Day Without Immigrants": More than 100 Workers Fired over Strike

Tue Feb 21, 2017 17:26:33

More than 100 workers in the US have lost their jobs after taking part in last week's Day Without Immigrants protest, US media say.

Dozens of people, including construction workers and restaurant staff, reported being fired after staying at home on Thursday.

The protest aimed to highlight the contribution of immigrants in the US.

One employer told CNN his staff would have to "pay the price" of standing up for what they believed in.

Jim Serowski, of JVS Masonry in Commerce City, Colorado, said he had no regrets after sacking about 30 bricklayers.

"They were warned, 'if you do this you're hurting the company, and if you go against the team you're not a member of the team'," he was quoted as saying.

The exact number of workers fired is not clear, however US outlets reported a series of sackings. Among those who said they had lost their jobs were 12 restaurant workers in Tulsa, Oklahoma, who spoke to Fox News and 18 employees at a commercial painting company in Nolensville, Tennessee, according to NBC.

Businesses and schools across the US faced widespread disruption on Thursday as workers and students took part in a strike over Donald Trump's hard-line stance on immigration.

In a news conference last week, Trump said he would publish a new executive order after the US courts stymied his previous attempt to bar the entry of immigrants from seven mostly Muslim countries.

The Associated Press quoted a senior administration official on Monday as saying the new order would target people from the same countries - Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya.

Rallies took place in various US cities, including New York's Times Square, over the weekend to support Muslim Americans and to protest against Mr Trump's policies.

In Boston, hundreds of scientists took to the streets on Sunday over the president's approach to issues such as climate change.

Thousands of people are expected to attend further demonstrations on Monday to coincide with the US Presidents' Day holiday, with Mr Trump expected to return to Washington from his Mar-a-Lago beach retreat in Florida.

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