Two Pasco companies must pay nearly half a million dollars for sexually abusing and harassing their female farmworkers.

Greenridge Farms and Baker Produce will pay $470,000 to resolve the civil rights lawsuit over multiple allegations of sexual assault and sexual harassment of female farmworkers by one of the companies’ supervisors, said state Attorney General Bob Ferguson in a release.

Ferguson also asserted the companies retaliated against the workers when they spoke out.

All of the money will go to the four women who reported the assaults, harassment and retaliation. One of the workers also reported multiple rapes to law enforcement.

Greenridge and Baker are two large farming operations formerly owned by well-known Washington grower Frank Tiegs until his death earlier this year.

Ferguson asserts the companies violated the Washington Law Against Discrimination and Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act by subjecting female employees to sexual harassment and retaliating against employees who rejected the supervisor’s advances or who complained about his conduct.

The conduct ranged from at least 2018 up until the supervisor, Antonio “Junior” Garcilazo, was fired in March 2024. Greenridge and Baker are liable for Garcilazo’s conduct because of his supervisory role with the companies.

“These companies knew that this manager was harassing and assaulting their employees, but did not stop it,” Ferguson said in a release. “He abused his authority over these women for sexual favors. These workers deserved to be heard. All workers should have a safe work environment free from abuse.”

In addition to paying $470,000, the consent decree, filed in Benton-Franklin Superior Court, bars Greenridge Farms and Baker Produce from rehiring Garcilazo in any capacity. It also requires the companies to institute new anti-discrimination and sexual harassment policies within 60 days that encourage employees to come forward with complaints. 

The policies must include specific procedures for making anonymous discrimination or harassment complaints in the worker’s primary language, among other requirements.

The Attorney General’s office learned of complaints through the Northwest Justice Project in June 2023.

Four women who worked at the companies ultimately came forward with allegations during the Attorney General’s investigation, ranging from rape to sexual harassment. 

Those who reported the harassment and abuse, threatened to report it, or denied Garcilazo’s advances, faced workplace retaliation, including reduced hours, negative performance reviews and termination.

Know your rights

Ferguson’s Wing Luke Civil Rights Division produced guides designed to be posted in workplaces to educate Washington workers about their rights regarding sexual harassment in the workplace.

The flyer, available in both Spanish and English, lays out the definition and types of sexual harassment, requirements for employers and steps employees can take if they experience sexual harassment.

All forms of sexual harassment are illegal, and employers may be liable for this behavior if they do not take the proper steps to address it.

More information on employer responsibilities, including downloadable copies of the flyers, can be found at: atg.wa.gov/sexual-harassment-law.

The Wing Luke division works to protect the rights of all Washington residents by enforcing state and federal anti-discrimination laws. It is named for an assistant attorney general for the state of Washington in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He went on to become the first person of color elected to the Seattle City Council and the first Asian American elected to public office in the Pacific Northwest.