Did Donald Trump Stiff Workers on Passover Getaway to Miami?

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
One of the many lawsuits alleging underpayment by Donald Trump is from workers who say they were denied overtime during a Passover event.
Trump Miami Resort Management LLC last month settled with 48 workers who said they did not receive overtime during a 10-day Passover event at the Trump National Doral Miami, USA Today reported.
Settlements ranged between $800 to $3,000 per worker, with some saying they put in 20-hour days.
A Long Island-based tour company, VIP Ram, markets National Doral as a Passover destination. The company promises to take vacationers’ “Passover vacation experience to the next level” and says it is “reinventing the Passover culinary experience” with “authentic Texas smokehouse barbecue,” among other delicacies.
USA Today said it reviewed 60 lawsuits and hundreds of government filings, showing Trump not paying full price for contracted work going back to the 1980s, when he was building casinos in New Jersey.
He and his daughter Ivanka told the newspaper that the company pays the full promised fee for the vast majority of contracts, withholding or lowering payment only in cases where the service was under par.
“Let’s say that they do a job that’s not good, or a job that they didn’t finish, or a job that was way late. I’ll deduct from their contract, absolutely,” Trump, the presumptive presidential nominee, told the newspaper. “That’s what the country should be doing.”
Hello, fellow Forward reader! I’m Joel Brown, a Forward reader and supporter for more than 15 years, and currently the chair of the board of directors.
I’m an avid Forward reader because it ticks so many of my essential boxes: excellent journalism, Jewish focus and diverse viewpoints. In today’s political climate, what I most appreciate is the Forward’s independence — made possible by the generosity of its membership.
The Forward is committed to bringing you unbiased, nuanced Jewish news. From my position as board chair, I see an exciting future as we expand our position as the definitive independent voice of contemporary American Judaism.
— Joel Brown, Forward board chair
