State Labor Commission Secures $6 Million for Central Coast Farmworkers

The California Labor Commission secured a $6.175 million settlement with Santa Maria–based agricultural company Alco Harvesting (a k a Bonibak Produce) relating to COVID-era labor violations that impacted more than 10,000 farmworkers on the Central Coast.

The lawsuit stems from an investigation opened in 2020 following reports of a farmworker dying at an employee-sponsored housing site. The investigation found that Alco Harvesting failed to provide workers with legally required notice of sick leave and COVID-related supplemental leave, effectively preventing thousands of workers from staying home when sick, according to a spokesperson for the California Labor Commission’s office.

These labor violations included wage-and-hour violations and unpaid transportation time or overtime. Some involved H-2A Visa holders living in employer-sponsored housing during the pandemic, including cases of workers who were reportedly quarantined in crowded motel rooms while infected with COVID-19.

“Alco Harvesting failed to meet basic employer responsibilities by not informing workers of their right to sick leave,” said California Labor Commissioner Lilia García-Brower. “This multimillion-dollar settlement is not just about holding an employer accountable; it is about protecting the dignity and safety of workers. Workers in California are protected by labor laws no matter their immigration status, and when these rights are violated, the state will act decisively to deliver justice.”

One of the impacted farmworkers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that many “kept working, even while ill, without knowing that we had paid sick leave.

“We lived in employer-provided housing, and the company controlled our work time and when we could leave,” the farmworker said. “When we traveled on our own time to get care and returned ready to work, some were fired. What happened was unfair, and we do not want this to happen to anyone else.”

The Labor Commissioner’s Office filed the lawsuit against Alco Harvesting/Bonipak Produce in Santa Barbara Superior Court back in July 2021 following an investigation that began after reports of a farmworker who died at an employer-provided housing site. The case was later combined with several other actions made on behalf of H-2A workers related to alleged labor violations.

California Department of Industrial Relations Attorney Anel Flores helped litigate the case in Santa Barbara Superior Court. Flores joined in the investigation in 2020, and when the lawsuit was filed in 2021, she said she began to see the true scope of the problem, with Alco Harvesting/Bonipak Produce being one of the longest-running agricultural operations on the Central Coast. 

“I knew from the beginning it was a larger operation,” Flores said. “When we started requesting documents and saw the number of employees on the payroll. They’ve been around for a long time.”

Alco Harvesting/Bonipak Produce opened as a family business in 1932, and since then, four generations have run the business as it expanded to employ thousands of workers in the Central Coast area and at its other sites in Arizona. The company brings many workers over from Mexico through the H-2A work program to help harvest lettuce, strawberries, cilantro, and a large variety of other seasonal crops that end up in grocery stores nationwide.

Flores said that the case represents a win for farmworkers, a group that traditionally doesn’t speak out against employer violations. She said the Labor Commissioner’s Office owed a lot of credit to the California Rural Labor Assistance and the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE), two organizations that work on the ground with farmworkers, and helped gain the trust of the workers who were referred to the commissioner’s investigation.

“We think it’s really important to send a message to farmworkers that they have a right to enforce their rights, and they have a right to collect unpaid wages,” Flores said. “We need employers to comply with the law for all workers.”

At least $4.2 million of the total settlement will be distributed directly to the affected farmworkers. This total includes $1.5 million from sick leave and minimum wage violations. The remaining funds will go toward other damages, penalties, and legal fees. The settlement also requires Alco Harvesting to post notices to workers about paid sick leave going forward, along with other compliance and reporting requirements.

Alco Harvesting representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comments regarding the settlement. 

One of the farmworkers that was part of the settlement said it felt like a “great relief.”

“It is not just about the money, but about dignity and no longer feeling invisible,” he said. “We worked hard every day, and many times we worked while sick without knowing we had the right to paid sick leave or being able to take a day off when we really needed it. I hope this shows other workers like me that labor laws protect all of us, not just some.”

Representatives with the Labor Commissioner’s Office encourage anybody with information about workers who have experienced being detained or deported without receiving all wages owed, or retaliation, or work-related immigration abuse, to contact the public helpline at 855-526-7775.