![]() After they chatted, Fernandes tilted back the driver’s seat of her white Kia with the engine running, the windows shut, and the doors locked to catch up on sleep.Ī Wawa employee noticed her sleeping in the car and was shocked to find her there-eyes open, foaming at the mouth-when his shift ended hours later. ![]() “U can call if you like,” she texted her boyfriend just as he got to work. ![]() Grainy security camera footage of a local Wawa convenience store shows her car pulling in and parking just after 6:47 in the morning. On Monday, August 25, 2014, Maria’s shift ended at 6:00 a.m., and the next did not begin for two hours. Between shifts, Fernandes napped in her car, the engine running to keep her warm. Though she worked hard, New Jersey’s minimum wage was not enough, and she often fell behind on the $550 rent for her basement apartment in Newark. On average she worked about eighty-seven hours per week. at a shop in Harrison, and always took on additional hours when asked. On weekends she picked up a third shift beginning at 8:00 a.m. If business was slow, she took a respite by settling into piles of doughnut containers to rest for a few minutes. She then headed to a second shop, open 24/7 in downtown Linden, where she worked until 6:00 a.m. she worked the counter at a Dunkin’ kiosk inside Newark’s commuter rail station. She worked at three different Dunkin’ locations, often back-to-back-to-back, and was described as a “model employee” by a company spokesperson. I F YOU HAVE EVER STOPPED AT A D UNKIN’ D ONUTS IN NORTHERN New Jersey, before or after work, there’s a chance that Maria Fernandes poured your coffee.
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