USA: Discrimination and civil rights lawsuit ongoing amid sale of US agri company
Summary
Date Reported: 27 Feb 2023
Location: United States of America
Companies
Ostrom Mushroom Farms - EmployerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Location unknown , Agriculture & livestock , Women )Issues
Gender Discrimination , Dismissal , Wage Theft , Precarious/Unsuitable Living Conditions , Right to Food , Reasonable Working Hours & Leisure Time , Contract Substitution , Recruitment Fees , Racial, ethnicity, caste or origin discrimination , Irregular WorkResponse
Response sought: No
Action taken: In May 2023, Ostrom Mushroom Farms was fined USD3.4m for gender discrimination and other unfair and discriminatory practices. A later investigation by the Dep. of Labor fined Ostrom $70,348 for program violations, $1,227 for failing to keep records and obtain a housing inspection before workers arrived, and $3,067 for unlawful cost-shifting. The department recovered almost $60,000 in unpaid wages for 62 employees working under the temporary visa for agriculture workers. The penalties were issued in June and Ostrom has paid the fines and the company has since been sold to Windmill Farms.
Source type: News outlet
"Canadian company buys Ostrom amid ongoing worker discrimination suit", Feb 27 2023
A Canadian company recently purchased Ostrom Mushroom Farms, a major producer in the Pacific Northwest that’s still embroiled in a civil rights and discrimination lawsuit ...
... state investigators found the ... company had systematically fired over 140 employees, mostly women, and replaced them with men who picked at faster rates. Investigators also found the company had discriminated against domestic workers by hiring foreign workers instead...
After the purchase, announced on Feb. 15, Windmill Farms of Ashburn, Ontario, allegedly fired Ostrom’s remaining employees and rehired those who signed arbitration agreements for any labor disputes while offering them lower wages ...
Windmill Farms CEO Clay Taylor said in an email the company extended offers to all former employees at “market-competitive wages,” but did not elaborate further. The company did not comment on the union’s allegations Friday after multiple requests.
In the email, Taylor said the company is committed to providing a safe workplace environment free from discrimination and will contribute to the local community ...
The new ownership will be responsible for any fines that result from the citation, said
The new leadership has not shown intent to support workers’ continued efforts to unionize ...
“It’s remarkable that Ostrom would rather not exist than talk to us,” L&I spokesperson Dina Lorraine said.De Loera-Brust said of the sale. “This just shows the lengths with which companies will go to crush union activity.”...