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MONTREAL — A French airline caterer is denying that it knowingly employed undocumented workers at its Montreal facilities or that it used their precarious status to exploit them. 

Newrest, which prepares in-flight meals for airlines, said in an email that it "scrupulously" respects Canadian and Quebec employment and immigration laws.

The company is named in an application for a class-action lawsuit that alleges more than 400 people were lured to Canada under false premises by a Montreal-area placement agency. 

The lawsuit claims that the majority of those individuals were enticed to work for Newrest — even though they didn't have work permits — and were regularly paid less than minimum wage and subject to other abuses.

Newrest says it takes the claims seriously and is investigating.

The company, which has operated in Canada since 2010, says it has never been sanctioned by Canadian authorities. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2023. 

The Canadian Press