Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is in talks to settle a U.S. probe into whether it knowingly hired contractors who used illegal immigrants to clean its stores, the Wall Street Journal said on Wednesday, citing unnamed people close to the company and the investigation.
Though no deal has been struck, officials for the U.S. Department of Justice and the world’s largest retailer have discussed a $10 million settlement, the newspaper said, citing its sources on both sides.
Wal-Mart, based in Bentonville, Arkansas, isn’t expected to admit wrongdoing in a settlement, and criminal charges are unlikely against its top executives, the paper said, citing no sources. But the Journal, citing the unnamed people, said a stiffer penalty is likely if Wal-Mart hires undocumented workers in the future.
The company was not immediately available for comment.
A spokesman, Gus Whitcomb, told the newspaper: “From the very beginning, we’ve maintained we knew nothing of the alleged violations of the floor-cleaning contractors and that we hoped the government would reach that conclusion in an expeditious manner. We continue to cooperate with this investigation, which includes talking with government representatives on a regular basis.”
Wal-Mart has been the subject of a probe by a federal grand jury seated in Scranton, Pennsylvania, into violations of U.S. immigration laws.
The grand jury might finish its hearings by year-end, the newspaper said, citing an interview with the U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Thomas Marino, excerpted in the Patriot-News of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
The hearings began after a series of raids last October, when U.S. agents rounded up about 250 illegal immigrants working at 61 Wal-Mart stores in 21 states. Law enforcement officials then said some Wal-Mart executives had direct knowledge of the illegal workers, based on recorded conversations, surveillance and monitoring.