Farmworkers pick cucumbers. An Oregon producer of cucumbers, radishes, leeks and other vegetable row crops has prevailed in lawsuit that claimed the farm unlawfully favored foreign guestworkers.

A federal jury has shot down claims that an Oregon vegetable producer unlawfully discriminated against a farmworker by favoring foreign guestworkers.

In 2020, Teofilo Ibanez de Dios filed a lawsuit accusing Siri and Son Farms of St. Paul, Ore., of firing him for complaining about preferential treatment for foreign employees hired through the H-2A program.

An eight-member jury has unanimously rejected the plaintiff’s allegations that Siri and Son Farms violated the Migrant and Seasonal Workers Protection Act or state laws against discrimination and retaliation.

The jury reached its conclusion on Aug. 3 after a three-day trial held at the federal courthouse in Eugene.

Rather than settle the lawsuit, Siri and Son Farms wanted to prove in court that it hadn’t done anything wrong, said Tim Bernasek, the company’s attorney.

“They felt it was important to take it all the way,” Bernasek said.

It’s encouraging the farm has prevailed in the jury trial, particularly since labor advocates increasingly seem motivated to challenge the H-2A program in court, he said.

“As cases like the Siri and Son case result in defense verdicts, I’d hope that would dampen the zeal of plaintiffs’ lawyers in bringing these types of cases,” Bernasek said.

An attorney for Ibanez de Dios said the plaintiff and his legal team are disappointed in the jury’s verdict and are discussing their legal options.

According to the plaintiff, the farm initially told him there was no work available even though it was bringing in H-2A workers to harvest and box crops.

The plaintiff claimed he was hired only upon returning with a state notice about H-2A job openings, but later discovered he earned about $2.30 less than the foreign workers.

After the plaintiff complained about the wage discrepancy, his supervisor agreed to a pay increase but then berated and fired him later the same day, according to the allegations in the complaint.

The lawsuit claimed the farm violated federal and state labor laws by providing false and misleading information, failing to fully pay the plaintiff when due and retaliating against him for whistleblowing and making a wage claim.

The plaintiff sought more than $28,000 in economic damages from Siri and Son Farms, based on missing 18 weeks of wages due to being terminated.

His attorneys said the plaintiff was also entitled to noneconomic damages under Oregon law, in an amount to be proven at trial, while federal case law suggested he may be awarded “compensation for mental anguish and humiliation.”

Siri and Son Farms characterized the events leading up to the lawsuit much differently.

The farm said that weather conditions had delayed the harvest season, which hadn’t yet begun when the plaintiff originally asked for a job. Because he returned “eager to start work,” the farm instead hired him as a weeder — a position that pays about $2.30 less than harvest work, according to the farm.

The plaintiff soon switched to irrigation work based on his previous experience, which paid the same hourly rate, but he “turned out to be a difficult employee and coworker,” the farm said in a court document.

Aside from his “hostile and abusive” treatment of other employees, the plaintiff also “responded angrily and made hostile gestures” to a supervisor who asked why he wasn’t working, the document said.

After receiving a written warning notice about his behavior, the plaintiff “stormed off” and quit his job while vowing to complain to state regulators, the farm said.

Though the plaintiff agreed an hourly wage of $12.70, the farm ended up paying him $15 per hour “in an effort to de-escalate the situation,” which ultimately proved futile, the document said.

The jury sided with Siri and Son Farms in this case, but another lawsuit that claims it unlawfully favored H-2A workers remains pending.

Court documents indicate the farm reached a settlement with the plaintiff earlier this year. A federal judge hasn’t yet closed the case, however, and will hold a status hearing next month.

Two other Oregon farms also face federal complaints alleging H-2A violations.

Coleman Farms in Marion County is defending against a lawsuit originally filed by nine farmworkers who claim they were denied job offers or received lower wages than foreign guestworkers.

One of the farmworkers dropped all his claims after a July settlement conference, while another plaintiff dismissed some of her claims.

Attorneys for two other farmworkers have withdrawn from the case after their clients died.

Last month, Cal Farms, which grows vegetables in several locations in Oregon, requested a jury trial in a lawsuit brought by a farmworker earlier this year.

In its answer to the complaint, the company denied violating working arrangements with the plaintiff or denying him employment opportunities after hiring H-2A workers.

Advocates for Northwest farm employers say the number of lawsuits over H-2A workers has risen in recent years, along with the program’s popularity, which has grown due to labor shortages.

Attorneys for farmworkers say they’re legitimately fighting back against unlawful discrimination and deny targeting the program because foreign guestworkers are harder to unionize.