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In the US, a years-long state lawsuit against owners of two Yakima orchards has concluded after the owners paid $500,000 in backpay to more than 400 workers, Yahoo reports.
Rene and Carmen Garcia own G&G Orchards Inc. and RC Orchards LLC. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries found that between 2018 and 2021, workers were improperly paid for the fruit they harvested. They were also required to remain on-site while machines were repaired.
The Attorney General’s Office filed a lawsuit in Yakima County Superior Court after the couple “rebuffed extensive efforts to reach a settlement”, according to a news release from L&I. The investigation ultimately found the companies owed workers about $408,000 in wages and interest and an additional $42,000 for machinery breakdown time.
In September 2021, the Garcias told the Yakima Herald-Republic that they were proud of the way they treated their workers and claimed that the lawsuit against them was discriminatory.
“It’s hard being a small business, and then being Hispanic makes it that much harder, especially when we feel targeted and bullied by your office,” Carmen Garcia wrote in a letter to the Attorney General’s Office. “I feel like we’re being forced to pay for something we don’t owe just because we’re Hispanic.”
However, the two orchards had reportedly come under fire for labour abuses before. Northwest Justice Project filed a separate lawsuit for back wages in 2020 on behalf of seven H-2A workers who worked under the Garcias. They eventually received $240,000 in wages and damages.
Under the new settlement, the Garcias will be required to notify their employees about their entitlements. L&I will also require them to conduct audits, provide a detailed payroll report from 2022, and change record-keeping practices to better reflect the hours worked by employees.
In the news release, L&I Director Joel Sacks stated the department will do its best to reach foreign workers who would benefit from the settlement.
“Employers make a commitment to pay for a worker’s time and labor, and this payment reflects a lot of hard work to make sure that promise was kept,” Sacks said in the news release.
Source: Yahoo
(Quotes via original reporting)
In the US, a years-long state lawsuit against owners of two Yakima orchards has concluded after the owners paid $500,000 in backpay to more than 400 workers, Yahoo reports.
Rene and Carmen Garcia own G&G Orchards Inc. and RC Orchards LLC. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries found that between 2018 and 2021, workers were improperly paid for the fruit they harvested. They were also required to remain on-site while machines were repaired.
The Attorney General’s Office filed a lawsuit in Yakima County Superior Court after the couple “rebuffed extensive efforts to reach a settlement”, according to a news release from L&I. The investigation ultimately found the companies owed workers about $408,000 in wages and interest and an additional $42,000 for machinery breakdown time.
In September 2021, the Garcias told the Yakima Herald-Republic that they were proud of the way they treated their workers and claimed that the lawsuit against them was discriminatory.
“It’s hard being a small business, and then being Hispanic makes it that much harder, especially when we feel targeted and bullied by your office,” Carmen Garcia wrote in a letter to the Attorney General’s Office. “I feel like we’re being forced to pay for something we don’t owe just because we’re Hispanic.”
However, the two orchards had reportedly come under fire for labour abuses before. Northwest Justice Project filed a separate lawsuit for back wages in 2020 on behalf of seven H-2A workers who worked under the Garcias. They eventually received $240,000 in wages and damages.
Under the new settlement, the Garcias will be required to notify their employees about their entitlements. L&I will also require them to conduct audits, provide a detailed payroll report from 2022, and change record-keeping practices to better reflect the hours worked by employees.
In the news release, L&I Director Joel Sacks stated the department will do its best to reach foreign workers who would benefit from the settlement.
“Employers make a commitment to pay for a worker’s time and labor, and this payment reflects a lot of hard work to make sure that promise was kept,” Sacks said in the news release.
Source: Yahoo
(Quotes via original reporting)