Washington State Proceeds With Case Over Immigrant Detainee Pay

The state of Washington can go forward with its case against the operator of an immigrant detention center for paying detainees only $1 a day for their work.

The state in its lawsuit against the GEO Group argues that immigrants in Washington’s Northwest Detention Center are “employees” under the state’s minimum wage law, making them entitled to $11 an hour. GEO Group, one of the largest U.S. private prison companies, contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to run the center, which can house up to 1,575 detainees.

The company also is defending a class action filed by detainees in Colorado, ...