Apple Grower, Union Facing Labor Hearing

The next step in the saga of one Washington apple grower and the Teamsters union will be a federal labor board hearing.

Last week the National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint against Stemilt Growers, a fruit packing, storage and wholesale business based in Wenatchee, and its California-based consultant Ag-Relate Inc.

The NLRB alleges that the company and its consultant violated federal labor law in treatment of Stemilt workers before and during a union election in January.

The Teamsters have tried to organize Stemilt employees for several years, but in the election more than half of the employees voted against Teamster representation.

Shortly after, the union filed a complaint with the NLRB contesting the results and alleging Stemilt intimidated and threatened employees.

After reviewing the compliant, the NLRB released its charges against the company and Ag-Relate. The charges allege the surveillance or appearance of monitoring employees’ union activities, prohibiting employees from wearing union T-shirts, interfering with the distribution of union fliers, interrogating employees about union activities and threatening that the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service would raid Stemilt.

“I think right after the election, the workers said due to the harassment and intimidation, they felt the election had not been on the up and up,” said Teamster spokesman Patrick Lacefield.

He said the union is pleased the matter is going before a labor board judge in July.

If the decision favors the union, Lacefield said, “punishment could range from a new election to an order that Stemilt should go ahead and bargain with the union.” He added, “We’ll be pressing for the most serious remedies possible.”

A Stemilt spokesman said the company is looking forward to the proceeding, especially since the union hasn’t sought a bargaining order or an injunction in the matter. “We’re happy it has come to this,” said Larry Memmott, human resource manger for the company. “It will give us the chance to prove the allegations are not true.”

The hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. July 23 at the Federal Building in Wenatchee.