CLOVIS, Calif. — A federal court ruled a San Joaquin Valley carrot company engaged in discriminatory practices against farmworkers with disabilities.
The ruling Monday from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California comes out of a long-standing battle between Grimmway Farms and the California Civil Rights Division. The agency filed a lawsuit against the farm in 2021.
According to the original complaint, Grimmway Farms allegedly forced farmworkers with work-related or other injuries or illnesses into taking unpaid leave and did not provide any accommodations like different job placements or aids. Some employees reported using workers’ compensation benefits, but once expired, they either took unpaid leave or went to work without accommodations, according to the California Civil Rights Division. Some workers were ultimately terminated.
“This decision is a major victory for disability rights and the rights of farmworkers across California,” said CRD director Kervin Kish in a press release. “The court has ruled loud and clear that forcing injured workers into unpaid leave is disability discrimination. Here in California, farmworkers have rights, they are protected, and we will not shy away from fighting on their behalf.”
The court released a 50-page decision.
Grimmway Farms representatives disagreed with the Civil Rights Division’s complaint and said the matter is not yet fully resolved.
“We firmly disagree with CRD’s characterizations of the court’s pre-trial decisions, noting that many of the motions were resolved in Grimmway’s favor,” Officials wrote to KVPR. “The allegations do not reflect the principles or values that guide our company, and we will respectfully see the matter through trial and the proper legal process.”
Grimmway Farms is headquartered in Bakersfield and is considered one of the largest growers, producers and suppliers of carrots in the world.
A judge ordered Grimmway Farms and the Civil Rights Department to seek a trial date to begin exploring potential monetary earnings or other compensation for affected workers.
Grimmway Farms declined to provide a more detailed statement because of ongoing litigation, but a company spokesperson informed KVPR the dispute between the Civil Rights Division and the farm dates back to 2018.
Monday’s ruling came after an action by both parties earlier this year to file “pending cross-motions for summary judgment.”
According to the court’s findings, 197 of the 199 employees who requested accommodations were placed on unpaid leave. The remaining two employees were given light or modified work.
As far as assistive technologies, expert witness Robert Sniderman found that accommodations were not present, and a supervisor at the facility had no knowledge of them.
“Dr. Sniderman reported that a defendant supervisor described the process for finding permanent accommodations solely as looking for another job and expressed unfamiliarity with any other type of accommodation,” the court stated.
