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Two French workers from a Molex plant in France that will be shuttered and the jobs moved to China or Vietnam flew to Chicago last week to meet with shareholders regarding the logistics surrounding the closing. More than two hundred fifty workers will lose their jobs due to the closure and according to the union representing the workers the U.S.-based company has been unresponsive to demands from the French union representing the workers. However, when the two workers arrived at the shareholders meeting they were denied entry.

The Service Employees International Union in Illinois has been playing a major role in helping the workers have their voices heard by Molex in the United States. Workers United’s Noel Beasley said the workers had valid proxies and should have been allowed into the meeting:

[Beasley]: The company essentially refused to let them into the meeting even though there is no question the proxies were valid proxies.

Beasley said U.S. unions are supporting the French workers in their fight and will be using their resources to make sure the company respects the workers’ rights to have a voice.

[Beasley2]: We’re going to be pursuing all of our options and going after the company for violating the rights of proxy holders to go to a shareholders meeting. It was pretty clear they were gunning for them.