A class of Latino farm workers at Rivera Vineyards will share $1,050,000 in one of the largest employment discrimination settlements by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in the agribusiness industry. The agreement covers a group of employees, mostly Hispanic women, who were allegedly sexually harassed, retaliated against for complaining, and segregated into certain jobs based on gender.

Rivera Vineyards and its affiliated companies, prior to this litigation, were the largest growers and packers of table grapes, encompassing more than 2,000 acres of vineyards in California's Coachella Valley. The settlement, obtained by the agency's Los Angeles District Office under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, will benefit a class of women who were allegedly sexually harassed, including one who was allegedly raped; a class of workers who were allegedly fired and not hired back after opposing the harassment; and a class of women who were denied certain job opportunities in positions of pruning, vine tying, girdling, swamping (loading field trucks) and irrigating.

In addition to the $1,050,000 monetary settlement, the company also agreed to a Consent Decree to last three to eight years that provides significant injunctive remedies, including:

* Reinstatement for workers who were allegedly wrongfully terminated;
* Hiring of an outside consultant specifically to handle complaints of harassment;
* Implementing anti-discrimination policies and procedures;
* Providing EEO training for managers and employees;
* Establishing anti-discrimination and retaliation complaint procedures;
* Hiring goals for positions that were not open to women; and
* Reporting to the EEOC to show compliance with the Consent Decree.


Eric Dreiband, General Counsel for the Commission, who participated in a press conference to announce the landmark settlement, said: "I commend both the individuals who sought the EEOC's assistance and Rivera Vineyards for taking this case seriously and for doing what is right to ensure a workplace free of discrimination."