H-2A foreign guestworkers pick cherries at Griggs Orchards, Orondo, Wash., last summer. The minimum wage for guestworkers is likely to increase for Northwest farms and orchards, according to a National Agricultural Statistics Service survey.

SELAH, Wash. — A lawsuit alleging a Selah fruit company blacklisted workers who previously went on strike has been settled out of court with the company agreeing to rehire the workers in 2019 and pay lost wages.

Familias Unidas por la Justicia, a farmworkers union formed in 2013 to represent workers at Burlington’s Sakuma Bros. berry farm, filed the lawsuit June 14 in Yakima County Superior Court. Named in the suit were Larson Orchard Management Inc.; WAFLA, an H-2A farmworker provider; and CSI, WAFLA’s recruitment contractor in Durango, Mexico.

The lawsuit alleged the defendants retaliated against 18 H-2A-visa foreign guestworkers by not rehiring them in 2018 after they went on strike in 2017. Only four H-2A workers who did not go on strike were rehired. The lawsuit sought reinstatement of the workers and damages for lost wages.

Familias Unidas alleged blacklisting is a violation of state law and in breach of an agreement reached by the parties following the strike. Larson denied blacklisting and since initiation of the lawsuit worked with others in the industry to secure H-2A work for all 18 workers, Columbia Legal Services, representing the union, said in a news release.

The terms of the settlement include payment of up to $275,800 with specific payments directly to the workers as well as a promise by Larson to include the workers on its list of preferred workers in 2019. To the extent Larson does not participate in the H-2A program in 2019 it will pay the workers an additional sum, the news release states.

Keith Larson, president of Larson Fruit Co., verified he agreed to the settlement terms outlined in the news release and had no other comment. WAFLA Director Dan Fazio did not return a call for comment.

Joe Morrison, attorney for Columbia Legal Services, said about half the workers did a good job in 2016 and were rehired in 2017. In September 2017, the workers went on strike alleging numerous workplace issues including unsafe work conditions, long hours, racial and sexual slurs, lack of medical attention and falsification of pay stubs.

“This is a good settlement for all parties. We applaud Larson for stepping up to the plate and hope the future is better for all involved,” Morrison said.