Major League Baseball is in serious hot water. Reports from TMZ are showing that a lawsuit has been filed alleging that MLB has violated several labor laws during the last All Star Break. During FanFest, MLB assigned “volunteers” instead of paying to employ workers. One of their volunteers decided that the exploitation for free labor was a grave injustice and filed the lawsuit.
John Chen says that during the event he was tasked to do everything from filing paperwork to stamping the wrists of FanFest attendees. Obviously, these jobs sound very much like work that normal employees would be paid for. Instead, Chen says MLB paid the volunteers with MLB gear and admission to FanFest for him and a guest. Chen commented by saying:
“I very much enjoyed working at FanFest, but the minimum wage laws are important. People who cannot afford to work for free should be able to have the same experience I had.”
Chen is now hoping that the courts will award at least minimum wage payment to all volunteers of FanFest dating back to 2007 All Star Weekend.
MLB hasn’t released any statements on the situation, but violating human rights is definitely not a good look for an organization of this magnitude.
