Attorney General Nick Brown is taking legal action against Cornerstone Ranches, a prominent hops and apple grower in Toppenish, over allegations of discrimination against local and female farmworkers. A civil rights lawsuit, filed in Yakima County Superior Court, accuses the agricultural company of firing these workers only to replace them with male H-2A agricultural workers from abroad. Details emerging from the lawsuit reveal that local workers were held to disparate productivity standards and saw a drastic reduction in labor hours, falling from 91% to 59% over two years.
Furthermore, the complaint alleges that Cornerstone has continued to unfairly treat its local employees, with female workers in particular suffering a 39% drop in average weekly hours from June 2022 to April 2023. The state argues that these practices contravene the Washington Law Against Discrimination, under which employers are required to offer local workers the same benefits, wages, guarantee of hours, and working conditions as foreign H-2A workers. "The H-2A program was never intended to be a back-door source of labor when there are qualified workers here in Washington eager to take on the jobs, but that's exactly how Cornerstone has used it," Brown said, according to an official press release.
Brown's office has also highlighted alleged violations of the Consumer Protection Act. This includes claims that Cornerstone misled local job seekers by announcing nonexistent work opportunities and failed to disclose crucial information about pay rates and hours related to H-2A contract positions. Washingtonians who have been affected by these practices since 2020 are urged to step forward and contact the Civil Rights Division.
Despite efforts to portray itself as a community-oriented farm that values its workers like "family," Cornerstone has come into the spotlight for purportedly enacting deceptive practices in its workforce management. The AG's office has cited instances where a commendation of a local worker on the farm's social media was followed by their termination, amidst continued employment of H-2A workers. Assistant Attorneys General Alyson Dimmitt Gnam and Alexia Diorio, alongside Investigator Jennifer Sievert and Paralegal Anna Alfonso, have been appointed to lead the pursuit of justice for Washington's workforce, aiming to permanently block such allegedly unlawful practices and secure relief for those impacted.
