Wearing yellow shirts and holding hand-written placards, several current and former workers at the Apio Inc. plant in Guadalupe gathered inside a nearby residence and stood before cameras to protest what they are calling substandard workplace conditions.
Speaking to reporters in English and Spanish, former Apio worker Francisco Garcia alleged that he and his former co-workers are being taken advantage of by supervisors at the plant. He alleges that workers lack benefits, work hours are unstable, workers aren’t paid overtime, and the work environment is hostile.
Apio Inc. is a Guadalupe-based fresh-cut vegetable company that subcontracts about 1,000 workers, mostly immigrants. The company is a subsidiary of Landec Company based in Menlo Park, Calif.
“It’s just an uncomfortable place to work,” Garcia told reporters. “The supervisors are laughing at you, making jokes, and that’s just not fair.”
Garcia said he was humiliated and fired by his supervisors in front of co-workers.
Speaking in Spanish, several other employees, including female and elderly employees, alleged harsh working conditions such as verbal abuse and sexual harassment. Garcia said that the company discriminates against elderly employees.
“They can’t work at the same pace as younger people, and they risk getting injured or having a heart attack,” Garcia said.
On Dec. 5, employees will vote on whether to unionize. But Garcia said that Apio supervisors are attempting to discourage employees by handing out green T-shirts that say “Vote No.”
Ricardo Gomez, an organizer for the United Food and Commercial Workers International Local 99, drove from Phoenix, Ariz., to support the Apio workers.
He said he found a green shirt inside his hotel room.
“I’m not sure if this is a message or a threat,” Gomez told the Sun. “But it’s important that we vote yes.”
The Sun reached out to Apio for comment after the press conference. John Segale from Precision Public Relations responded on the company’s behalf. He didn’t respond to the allegations that Apio workers made about the company, but did issue this statement: “In a few days, employees will have the opportunity to exercise their freedom of speech and right to vote without any interference or intimidation in a manner they think will be best for them and their families. This is not an issue about our company or the union, and we are prohibited from providing any further comments.”
This article appears in Dec 4-11, 2014.