Update: The Settlement was approved on September 16, 2020, and payments will be issued on February 16, 2021.

Para ver este resumen en español, haga clic aquí. 

The purpose of this website is to provide a summary of the information contained in the Notice of Certification of Settlement Class and Class Action Settlement and Your Rights  ("Class Notice").  For more detailed information, you may download the Class Notice (in English and Spanish) and other documents regarding the proposed settlement ("Settlement") from the Case Documents section.

Kung nais ninyong makatanggap ng kopya ng mga Paunawang ito sa Tagalog, mangyaring tawagan po lamang ang Tagapangasiwa ng Settlement (ang "Settlement Administrator") sa 1-866-680-4825.  Mayroon silang mga tauhan na nagsasalita ng Tagalog na maaaring makatulong at magpadala ng mga paunawa sa Tagalog sa inyo.  Pagmasdan po lamang na ang inyong mga legal na karapatan ay maapektohan kung kayo man ay kumilos o hindi.

IF YOU WORKED WITH GRAPES AS AN AGRICULTURAL WORKER AT DELANO FARMS IN CALIFORNIA AT ANY TIME FROM JULY 17, 2005 TO FEBRUARY 15, 2017, YOU MIGHT BE ENTITLED TO MONEY FROM A CLASS - ACTION SETTLEMENT.

TO:      Individuals who are or were employed as non-exempt agricultural employees of Cal-Pacific Farm Management, L.P., T&R Bangi’s Agricultural Services, Inc., Kern Ag Labor Management Inc., La Vina Contracting, Inc., or Elite Ag Labor Services, Inc. and performed work at Delano Farms in California between July 17, 2005 through February 15, 2017, excluding those who worked only as irrigators, tractor drivers, or swampers or only in cold storage. 

Former and current agricultural grape workers sued Delano Farms and several labor contractors (the “Delano & Co”) that employed them in a class action lawsuit entitled Arredondo et al. v. Delano Farms Company et al. (the “Arredondo Action”). During the course of the Arredondo Action, the plaintiffs in that case (the “Arredondo Plaintiffs”), who are the same persons, subject to certain limitations, as the plaintiffs in the Cuevas Action, referenced above (the “Cuevas Plaintiffs”) hired California Survey Research Service (“CSRS”) to administer a door-to-door questionnaire of Delano Farms workers regarding their experience with alleged wage and hour violations. CSRS retained Bakersfield Market Research (“BMR”) to conduct the field work for the door-to-door questionnaires. The Arredondo Plaintiffs’ expert witness, Mr. Roberts, relied on the data for part of his expert report which was exchanged with the Defendants in the Arredondo Action and filed with the Court to help demonstrate damages for the wage and hour violations asserted in the Arredondo Action.

 

The Arredondo Plaintiffs later came to believe that BMR never actually conducted the survey, did not have sufficient or trained personnel to perform the interviews, submitted false data and lied about their actions. The Arredondo Plaintiffs then withdrew the expert report based on their belief that the data had been fraudulently collected and/or fabricated. The Arredondo Plaintiffs sought relief from the District Court to permit them to conduct a new survey. However, the Court denied this request and the Arredondo Plaintiffs thereafter settled the case for an amount that they believe was less than what they would have received otherwise.

The Cuevas Plaintiffs then filed a lawsuit against Phillips Fractor & Co., LLC (“PFC”), for whom Mr. Roberts performed work as an independent contractor, and against CSRS and BMR. A proposed settlement (the “Settlement”) has been reached in the Cuevas Action between the Cuevas Plaintiffs, on the one hand, and CSRS and PFC (the “Defendants”) on the other, as the Parties wish to fully and finally settle the Cuevas Action against the Defendants. The Cuevas Plaintiffs dismissed BMR from the Cuevas Action, and BMR is no longer a party. The Court has preliminarily approved the Settlement and provisionally certified a Settlement Class for purposes of settlement only. You have received this Notice because the Contractors’ records indicate that you are a member of the Settlement Class who participated in the Arredondo Settlement either by submitting a claim in that Action or by opting out. The purpose of this Notice is to inform you of how you can receive money from the Settlement, object to the Settlement, or exclude yourself from the Settlement.

The Fairness and Final Approval Hearing will be held before the Honorable Judge Amy D. Hogue on June 19, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. in Department 7 of the Spring Street Courthouse located at 312 North Spring Street, Los Angeles, California, 90012. Judge Hogue will determine whether the proposed Settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate and should be finally approved by the Court, and whether to grant Class Counsel’s motion for attorneys’ fees and costs and an enhancement payment to the Representative Plaintiff.  

CLASS MEMBER OPTIONS

To Exclude Yourself From the Settlement (Opt-Out):

If you “opt-out” and exclude yourself from the Settlement, you will not get any money from this Settlement.  Any money that would have gone to you will go to other Settlement Class Members.  If you opt out, you keep your right to sue Defendants  for any claim you may have related to the settlement in the Arredondo action, but you will have to do this on your own.  To exclude yourself from this Settlement, the Opt-Out Form must bepostmarked on or before March 23, 2020.

To Object to or Comment on the Settlement:

If you wish to object to the Settlement but still want to participate in it if the Court approves it, then file an objection with the Settlement Administrator stating why you don’t like the Settlement. If you wish to be heard at the Fairness and Final Approval Hearing, you must say so in your objection. If the Court does not agree with your objection, you will still be entitled to participate in the Settlement. Written objections to the Settlement must be filed with the Court on or before March 23, 2020.

Do Nothing:

If you do nothing you will be bound by the terms of the Settlement and will not be able to sue Defendants (or the Released Parties) for any  claim released by the Settlement.

 

Case Relevant Event	Date
Challenge Deadline	March 23, 2020
Opt-Out Statment Submission Deadline	March 23, 2020
Objection/Comment Submission Deadline	March 23, 2020
Fairness and Final Approval Hearing	June 19, 2020 at 10:00 am.