A U.S. District Court judge in Seattle, Wash., has certified a class-action lawsuit on behalf of some 600 Mexican workers who have alleged labor abuses at a Whatcom County blueberry farm.
The suit alleges the company violated the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which prohibits forced labor, through threats and implied threats that the workers would be sent to Mexico if they complained or did not meet production standards.
The suit’s other allegations include that Sarbanand Farms breached its contract with workers by providing low-quality food and violated state law.
The December ruling by U.S. District Judge John Coughenour sets the stage for a jury trial.
Tom Pedreira, the company’s attorney, noted that the ruling is not a finding of wrongdoing, and company “takes seriously its responsibilities with respects to working conditions and worker safety.”
Topics Lawsuits Agribusiness Washington
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
How One Florida Gas Station Worker Allegedly Defrauded Progressive of $44,700 
Trump’s Environmental Rollbacks Are Being Struck Down by Courts 
Willis Towers Watson Accuses Lockton of ‘Smash and Grab’ of Construction Team 
OpenAI Report Says Its Network Was Hacked by Its Own Rogue AI Agents From This Issue
