PAYETTE, Idaho — The U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division found Ontario Partners LLC had 76 H-2A employees working on a farm that were not on their program application. The employees also did not receive time-and-a-half wages for overtime work.
The U.S. The Department of Labor recovered $268,417 in back wages and liquidated damages for the 76 agricultural H-2A workers. An investigation found the employer housed the employees in unsafe living conditions, and did not grant overtime pay.
"Farmworkers provide essential labor that helps feed millions of Americans and have rights we will vigorously protect, regardless of the country they call home," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Katherine Walum in Portland, Oregon.
H-2A is defined by the Department of Labor as, "[the] program allows U.S. employers or U.S. agents who meet specific regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural jobs."
"Agricultural employers who benefit from the H-2A program must provide safe transportation, pay the wages they promised and the costs of transportation to and from the U.S., and provide clean and safe housing," said Walum.
Ontario Partners LLC is owned and operated by Partner's Produce. Ontario Partners LLC is a full-service onion packer and processor.
In addition to the back wages and damages being recovered, the Department of Labor also identified the following violations, said a news release:
- Paying H-2A workers more than two U.S. workers.
- Failing to reimburse workers for transportation costs.
- Providing unsafe transportation to and from the work site.
Housing workers in unsafe conditions with overflowing trash, mold and non-working smoke detectors.
According to the news release, the Division assessed $44,152 in civil money penalties for willful violations of the FLSA, as well as various violations of federal regulations under the H-2A and H-2B visa programs.
