Gloria Allred says she's been sandbagged by Meg Whitman -- in a crass attempt to win the election in spite of the undocumented housekeeper scandal.



Gloria and her client, Nicky Diaz Santillan, Whitman's former housekeeper, were supposed to appear today before the California Labor Commission ... to formally protest Whitman's refusal to pay Santillan for work she did. 

But the hearing was mysteriously continued until November 17 ... two weeks after the election. A rep from the state agency tells TMZ ... the hearing was continued because Gloria wanted to amend the legal papers she filed with the Labor Commission.

But Gloria is calling BS, claiming she never asked for a continuance and believes this is a power play to get Meg elected Governor. Gloria says, "If this is how she treats her Latina housekeeper, it does not bode well for how she may treat working people if heaven forbid she is elected."

As for Meg, her camp tells us, "Someone needs to tell Gloria Allred that her political circus has left town."

Gloria's parting shot ... "This is not EBay and we are not buying the lies she is selling."

Meg Whitman's husband just admitted it's "possible" he saw the letter that Gloria Allred claims proves Meg is a "liar" -- but Meg's camp now claims ... the letter actually HELPS Whitman.



Earlier today, Gloria produced a letter the Social Security Administration -- sent to Whitman's house in 2003 -- a letter Meg said she nor her husband ever received. 

But Gloria fired back ... the letter contains a handwritten note from Meg's husband to the housekeeper -- proving they not only received the letter, but knew their housekeeper was in the U.S. illegally.

Meg's husband, Dr. Griff Harsh, now says while it's "possible" he scribbled on the letter ... "it's important to note what this letter actually says: 'this letter makes no statement about your employee's immigration status."

During a phone interview moments ago, Meg's camp further explained how the letter "completely contradicts the conclusions" made by Allred ... CLICK HERE to listen.

So we gotta ask...

The company that Meg Whitman used to hire her maid Nicky Diaz Santillan back in 2000 claims Nicky deceived them about her immigration status before the company referred her over to Meg.



The owners of Town & Country Resources tell TMZ that when Nicky filled out the standard candidate questionnaire, she "indicated she was legally able to work in the United States" ... even though Nicky knew she was in the country illegally.

T&CR add ... "Further, Nicky provided us and our client with the documents that our client would need to complete the I-9 form as was their legal obligation as an employer."

The company owners -- who claim they only took over in 2008 and had no part in referring Nicky -- claim the policy has changed in the past few years ... and potential workers must undergo "a rigorous background check, verified by a third party."

Gloria Allred just went after Meg Whitman with a vengeance ... waiving a letter from the Social Security Administration sent to Meg back in 2003, putting Meg and her husband on notice there was a problem with their housekeeper's Social Security number -- a sign she was here illegally.


Earlier today Whitman suggested the housekeeper, Nicky Diaz Santillan, may have intercepted the letter and never given it to Whitman and her husband.  Whitman says she never got the letter.

But today, Gloria produced the letter with what she says is a written command from Meg's husband -- "Nicky, please check this."



Earlier today Whitman said she would take a polygraph test -- but Gloria says Nicky doesn't have to take a polygraph test because she has the letter as proof, and "the evidence speaks for itself."

As for Whitman's claim that Gloria is working with Jerry Brown to engineer a smear campaign -- Gloria says she has not made any contribution to Brown's current campaign and hasn't had any contact recently with Brown or his people.

The that's-so-Gloria moment came when she called Nicky, "The courageous Rosa Parks" of the Latino community. 

We took your questions today on everything -- including Meg Whitman and Gloria Allred's dueling press conferences, Mel and Robyn Gibson getting close to a divorce settlement, and Michael Lohan seeking a conservatorship for Lindsay.


Plus: Britney Spears' looking sexy at her conservatorship hearing.

Meg Whitman says she's the victim of a political smear campaign-- engineered by Gloria Allred and Jerry Brown -- and she's suggesting her former housekeeper stole a critical piece of mail.



Whitman acknowledges former housekeeper Nicky Diaz Santillan confessed after 9 years she falsified documents.  Whitman says she was "shocked" and had no choice but to fire her for lying and breaking the law.

Whitman says Jerry Brown should be "ashamed of what his allies are trying to do here."

Whitman says her housekeeper is being used by "cynical people around her" -- i.e., Gloria Allred.

Whitman says she never received a letter from the Social Security Administration informing her there was an irregularity in Nicky's Social Security number.  Whitman says Nicky is the one who picked up her mail, so she may have intercepted it and never turned it over.

Whitman says she would take a polygraph test to prove that she's not lying.

Here's Meg Whitman's undocumented former housekeeper Nicky Diaz Santillan at her Gloria Allred press conference on Wednesday (left) -- and "Jersey Shore" tantastic party girl Snooki in her booking photo back in July (right).



Neither was born in the United States.

We're just sayin'.

Meg Whitman's rival Jerry Brown is wasting no time making hay off her undocumented worker scandal -- saying the former maid has a "compelling story."



In a news release, the Democratic candidate for governor of California said he wants Nicky Diaz Santillan to be "treated with respect and dignity as this story unfolds."

Brown added, "After more than a year of Whitman demanding immigration policy that 'holds employers accountable,' we learn that accountability doesn't extend to her own actions."

Whitman's camp claims Santillan lied about her immigration status ... and they believe they have the documents to prove it.

We took your questions on everything -- including Meg Whitman's former maid making explosive claims, Bristol Palin's "cheesy" evidence in her bar investigation, and .Oksana Grigorieva heading to Oprah.



Plus: All you ever wanted to know about polygamy!

Meg Whitman's campaign just gave us documents suggesting that her former maid, Nicky Diaz Santillan, actually lied to Meg about her immigration status when she was hired back in 2000.



The documents, which Whitman claims Nicky filled out and signed back in 2000 during her application for employment, appear to show that the maid stated under the penalty of perjury that she was a "lawful permanent resident" of the United States.

Whitman also claims Nicky provided her with a social security card and valid California Driver's License with her employment application ... which Meg kept and has now handed over to TMZ.

Whitman has also issued a statement on the matter, saying ... "After 9 years of faithful service, Nicky came to us in June 2009 and confessed that she was an illegal worker."  Whitman continues, "Nicky has falsified the hiring documents and personal information she provided to the employment agency that brought her to us in 2000."

And, Whitman continues, "I believe Nicky is being manipulated by Gloria Allred for political and financial purposes during the last few weeks of a hotly contested election."

Whitman concludes, "This is a shameful example of the politics of personal destruction practiced by people like Jerry Brown and Gloria Allred.  The charges are without merit."

Meg Whitman's former housekeeper was an undocumented worker and claims working for the Republican candidate for Governor was a "nightmare."


Nicky Diaz Santillan, Whitman's housekeeper of 9 years, held a news conference with her lawyer, Gloria Allred, and claims Whitman had all the clues she was an undocumented worker but closed her eyes to it because she was cheap help ... $23 an hour.

Allred claims the housekeeper was "exploited, disrespected, humiliated and emotionally and financially abused" by Whitman.

Allred claims when the housekeeper was hired 9 years ago through an agency, Whitman never asked if she was in the U.S. legally.  And, during her employment, Santillan told Whitman she couldn't travel to Mexico.  And, Allred said, Whitman found out Santillan's Social Security number didn't match her name, but Whitman did nothing.  Allred said it's the classic case of "don't ask, don't tell."

That all changed, Allred says, when Whitman launched her campaign for Governor, realizing having an illegal alien on board was a liability ... and fired her.

Santillan says Whitman treated her "like a piece of garbage" by letting her go.

Allred says Santillan is filing a claim with the Labor Commission for back wages and mileage.

Yesterday, Whitman said in the debate with Jerry Brown that employers should be held accountable for hiring undocumented workers.

Click here to read Gloria's written statement.