Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc (CMG.N), now in the midst of a widening federal crackdown on its undocumented work force, warned investors a year ago that it was subject to immigration audits and that it may have been employing workers in the country illegally.
In what may prove to be a prescient statement, the Wall Street darling also said in its 2009 annual report that the discovery of a large number of unauthorized workers could disrupt operations and harm financial performance.
"We have been subject to audits by immigration authorities from time to time," the high-flying burrito chain said in its 2009 annual report filed in February 2010.
Company spokesman Chris Arnold said that disclosure referred to so-called I-9 audits, where U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reviews documents submitted to verify eligibility for legal employment in the United States.
Read the complete Reuters story, "Chipotle flagged immigrant worker audits last year."
