The 2nd nominee for the “Worst Employer of 2022” is … the enslaving employer

An allegation of slavery has played into each of the last three Worst Employer winners. Thus, even at this early point in this year's list, I have a strong suspicion that today's nominee will finish strong at year's end.

Workers Held at Gunpoint in Modern-Day

Slavery Operation in Georgia, Feds Allege

I'll let Vice fill in the details about "one of the country’s largest-ever human trafficking and visa fraud investigations."

For years, dozens of Mexican and Central American laborers were brought to the United States to work on Georgia farms as modern-day slaves, according to a newly unsealed federal indictment.

Now, two dozen accused members and associates of the crime ring that orchestrated the workers' exploitation are facing a laundry list of felony charges—all thanks to a three-year, multi-agency federal investigation dubbed "Operation Blooming Onion," a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia said Monday.

The allegations are just plain awful.

• Migrants were forced at gunpoint to dig onion with their bare hands for pennies per bucket.

• The members of the accused human smuggling and labor trafficking operation held onto passports and documents to keep the migrant workers from escaping.

• They also charged the migrant workers unlawful fees they could not afford and were then forced to work off the debt while threatening them with violence or deportation.

• Through all of this, the workers lived in cramped, dirty conditions, with little to no food or safe water.

As a result of the brutal conditions, at least two workers allegedly died while another was allegedly repeatedly kidnapped and raped. Meanwhile, the operators allegedly earned over $200 million. 

We should all be appalled by this disgusting behavior that garnered this nominee a well-earned spot on this year's list.