Women farmworkers sue Ore. dairy

PORTLAND — Farmworkers have gone back to court to force the largest dairy in Oregon to hire more women.

The lawsuit against Columbia River Dairy alleges that its Threemile Canyon Farms near Boardman has refused to hire women despite a previous discrimination lawsuit and settlement.

But a spokesman for the dairy called that allegation "an outright lie."

"This is a labor-organizing campaign disguised as a lawsuit," said spokesman Len Bergstein.

The United Farm Workers of America and the dairy have been battling for more than a year over labor rights at the 93,000-acre farm in Eastern Oregon. In addition to the dairy, it produces potatoes, compost and organic vegetables and grains.

Erik Nicholson, the union's regional director, led a rally in front of the downtown Portland office of San Francisco-based Bank of the West to announce the latest lawsuit. The dairy is one of the bank's large commercial customers.

Nicholson also said the union was launching an international consumer-education campaign to put pressure on the bank and the dairy's customers, such as McDonald's, to force dairy managers to hire more women.

"It's time for a change," Nicholson said.

John Stafford, a bank spokesman in San Francisco, said it supplies financial services to its customers, not management or labor-relations advice.

"Bank of the West has a duty to protect the privacy of its customers, whether it's dairies or farmworker unions," Stafford said.

Bergstein accused the union of trying to distract the public from its failure to organize about 150 workers at the dairy. Tactics have also included complaints to state and federal agencies alleging pollution and environmental damage, he said.

Bergstein said the dairy promotes sustainable farming practices and organic agriculture to protect the environment. He said workers are generally satisfied with wages of more than $10 an hour, health benefits and working conditions.

The dairy also has expanded its hiring and is encouraging women to apply, he said.

"There is nobody who will support the outrageous charges the union makes, absolutely nobody," Bergstein said.

But Mark Griffin, the attorney for the three women who filed the latest lawsuit, said the dairy and its owner, A.J. Bos, simply have not lived up to the settlement agreement in the first lawsuit.

"We think it's time for Mr. Bos to stop his discriminatory practices," Griffin said.