Pilgrim's Pride pays $4.5M to end immigrant probe

DALLAS, Texas - The U.S. Attorney's Office says it will not prosecute Pilgrim's Pride Corp. for immigration violations and has dropped an investigation into workers at the chicken producer's plants.

It says the Pittsburg, Texas-based company has in turn agreed to pay the Department of the Treasury $4.5 million and improve processes to screen prospective employees to ensure they are allowed to work in the United States.

In a Wednesday statement, the Attorney's Office says it has closed all immigration investigations into the company and its current or former employees.

In 2008, federal agents arrested 338 Pilgrim's Pride workers, of whom 38 were convicted of misuse of a Social Security number. Some were deported or faced other immigration proceedings.

Pilgrim's Pride's hodlings included several plants in north Georgia.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2009/12/225880