Real Stories: Sanango v. 200 E. 16th St. Hous. Corp.
Arcenio Sanango
Sanango v. 200 E. 16th St. Hous. Corp.
New York
Arcenio Sanango worked as a laborer on a construction site in New York City. One day, while working on a ladder, Sanango fell 15 feet to the ground, tearing his rotator cuff, fracturing bones in his spine, and suffering nerve damage to both of his eyes.
Unable to work because of his serious injuries, Sanango sued the owner of the work site and his contractors for lost wages. A jury awarded him $96,000 for past and future lost earnings based on what he would have been able to earn had he not been injured. Sanango's employers appealed the verdict, claiming that Sanango was not entitled to this compensation simply because he was an undocumented worker.
A New York Appellate court reluctantly agreed, with its hands tied by the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Hoffman Plastic Compound v. NLRB, which prohibited undocumented workers from collecting back pay owed to them by their employers. Although the court acknowledged Sanango’s rights were violated, Sanango was denied any remedy.
