Stemilt Files Suit Against Former Employee

In a lawsuit filed last month, Stemilt Ag Services claims a former employee fraudulently billed for migrant workers so she would receive an extra $1.1 million.  The October 18^th suit also alleges that former employee relations manager Elizabeth Hernandez Ascencio encouraged up to 50 field hands, to abandon their work before the apple harvest has concluded.  Those employees were part of an H-2A guest worker contract.

According to the Yakima Herald, the 49-year-old Hernandez was fired late last month, with the suit filed just three days later.  Court documents allege she formed her own business partnership outside of Stemilt, and using that partnership to bill a Stemilt Ag Services contractor, for services she was already being paid to perform.  Stemilt Ag Services, is a subsidiary of Wenatchee-based Stemilt Growers.

The suit additionally names Evergreen Agricultural Services, a Kennewick farm-labor firm, as a defendant, as well as Evergreen manager Abraham Larios as defendants.

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