"Secretary of Labor sues Valley farm company a year after fatal farmworker crash,"

The United States Department of Labor Secretary, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, is suing a San Joaquin Valley farming company one year after a deadly crash involving farmworkers.

The lawsuit was filed on March 14, days after Chavez was sworn in under the Trump Administration. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Eastern District court in Fresno accuses owners of Lion Farms, a company out of Selma, of violating rules under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA).

The act was established decades ago to ensure farmworker safety in the U.S.

The lawsuit by the federal agency alleges that a Lion Farms supervisor was aware the driver of the van carrying eight farmworkers – seven of whom died in the crash – was unlicensed and still instructed the driver to transport himself and the others from Kerman to a farm site the day of the crash, on Feb. 23, 2024.

The crash happened shortly after 6 a.m., as the eight farm workers were heading west on Avenue 7 near Road 22 in Madera County. A Chevy pickup truck crashed directly into the GMC van. The driver of that truck also died.

The California Highway Patrol reported at the time that six of the passengers in the van were not wearing seatbelts, and two were ejected from the vehicle during the crash...

The seven farmworkers who were killed in the crash were all repatriated to Mexico, where families held funerals. Several fundraisers in the Valley helped pay for the mens’ return.

The crash involving so many farmworkers caused concern among farmworker advocates. An investigation by CalMatters last year found that, despite regulations, farmworkers continue to face deadly commutes....