'Blatant disregard' | Department of Labor hands out penalties over temporary worker treatment

The Department of Labor has handed a three year ban to Harvest Plus, a farm labor contractor based in Kennewick, Washington, from the temporary agricultural worker program following an investigation into a range of serious labor violations.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found that the contractor had subjected workers to unsafe living conditions and denied wages and work opportunities to domestic workers.

Harvest Plus housed employees in mold-infested, overcrowded motel rooms and failed to them for their travel costs between their home countries and Washington. It was also found that unlicensed and unpermitted drivers transported the workers in unsafe vehicles lacking essential safety features, including seatbelts and working lights.

Furthermore, Harvest Plus unlawfully deducted wages for services such as laundry, did not provide copies of work contracts, and did not include actual terms and conditions in job orders.