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Former workers at a startup backed by Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance have slammed the company’s working conditions and treatment of its staff.
The ex-employees worked for AppHarvest, an agriculture technology company that was based in Kentucky but went bankrupt in 2023 facing hundreds of millions of dollars in debt.
Vance was a board member and early investor in the startup, describing it as a “good investment” when talking to Fox Business in 2021.
In July, the businessman-turned-politician described himself as a working-class hero as he announced his vice-presidential candidacy.
But several former staff, alongside previous investigations about AppHarvest, have claimed the working environment was grueling.
What claims are former workers making about AppHarvest?
Among the criticisms of the working conditions at AppHarvest are allegations that employees had to work through extreme temperatures, were given little direction and training, and were retaliated against for taking medical leave.
Speaking to CNN, Anthony Morgan, a former crop care specialist at the startup, when he joined the company in early 2020 the company culture was worker-friendly. He recalled reasonable working hours for staff, and benefits that were unmatched by other employers in Kentucky.
But with spiraling costs and escalating production demands, Morgan claims benefits such as health care were trimmed down, and workers were expected to work longer hours with fewer breaks to hit targets.
And for many staff, this meant grueling work in greenhouses with extreme temperatures in the triple digits.
“I think about the hottest that I experienced was around 128 degrees,” said Morgan, claiming that ambulances would arrive “a couple days a week” to assist staff suffering from heat exhaustion or injuries.
“It was a nightmare that should have never happened,” he told CNN, alleging that he was fired after taking medical leave for an injury sustained while working for AppHarvest.
Records show multiple complaints by AppHarvest employees with the US Department of Labor from 2020 to 2023, alleging they were not given sufficient water breaks or safety equipment.
Although documents show state inspectors did not find any violations, a subsequent report produced in 2023 by Grist and the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting claimed AppHarvest had a work environment that caused “panic attacks, ideation of personal harm, and relapses into addiction.”
Per the report, former employees similarly described a working environment where heat could reach as high as 155 degrees, leading to “dehydration, heat exhaustion, and medical emergencies.”
Some of the ex-employees also claimed that despite promises to protect local jobs, the company relied heavily on migrant workers to meet production demands.
Speaking to CNN, a spokesperson for Vance said he was “not aware of the operational decisions regarding hiring, employee benefits, or other workplace policies which were made after he departed AppHarvest’s board.”
US workers rally against extreme temperatures and poor working conditions
Workers in America, particularly those working in the agriculture industry, have long been battling for further protection from employers against extreme temperatures.
This week, workers in 13 cities all over the US have organized “Heat Week,” including actions such as marches and town halls, the Guardian reported.
“We have to keep struggling until the right to water, shade and rest is given to all workers in this country,” said Lourdes Cardenas, a California-based agricultural worker with United Farm Workers, speaking to reporters via a translator.
From retention to risk reduction: How to deliver training to improve employee experience
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Earlier in August, Ronald Silver II, a worker at Baltimore’s Department of Public Works, died from hyperthermia as temperatures soared to over 100 degrees. Health and workplace safety experts have argued, like many other heat-related work fatalities, could have been avoided with better protections.
Last month, President Joe Biden announced a long-awaited rule proposed by The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that would require employers to offer protections for 36 million indoor and outdoor workers across the US.
It has been worked on for over two years as public health and employee safety advocates call for better protections for workers, with only five states – California, Colorado, Oregon, Minnesota, and Washington – offering some form of state-wide legislation protecting workers from heat exposure hazards.
For more information about the rule and what it means for HR, as well as the threat of potential opposition to the rule, read HR Grapevine’s recent article.
