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GV Wire Investigation: What ALRB is Spending on Gerawan
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By David Taub, Senior Reporter
Published 7 years ago on
May 4, 2017

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The Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) has spent at least $281,350 in litigation in five cases against a Fresno County fruit packing company.

Gerawan Farming provided GV Wire with at least 25 cases in which its company or one of its employees has engaged with the ALRB. Each has been filed in various courtrooms and is in various stages of litigation.

Much of the litigation revolves around Gerawan dealings with the United Farm Workers (UFW) union. Gerawan is accused of negotiation in bad faith. Its employees’ 2013 vote on whether to decertify the union is in limbo after complaints were made against Gerawan for illegally manipulating the vote. The ballots have yet to be counted and sit at an undisclosed ALRB location.

Through a public records act request to the ALRB and California Department of Justice (DOJ), GV Wire inquired how much money is being spent on litigation, and if the Department of Justice is involved as well. Of the 25 cases, information was provided for five. The information reveals in those five cases, 20 attorneys provided 1,658 hours of work at a cost of $281,350. That averages to $169.69  an hour. (Note: there is no indication if the same DOJ staff worked multiple cases).

GV Wire asked five questions about each case:

  1. The number of hours spent by attorneys either representing the ALRB, or other state agencies or the State of California
  2. The number of staff used by ALRB, other state agencies or the State of California
  3. The cost of staff and/or attorneys used by the ALRB, other state agencies or the State of California
  4. Any request made by the ALRB or other state agency to the Attorney General to represent the agency (or anyone within the agency)
  5. The decision of the Attorney General to represent, to refuse to represent, or to withdraw from representing, the agency (or anyone within the agency)

Here are the responses of the 25 cases:

ALRB/DOJ does not have records: 11 cases

ALRB/DOJ claim exemption because of attorney-client privilege: 9 cases

ALRB/DOJ provided results: 5 cases

Note: in some cases, ALRB/DOJ responded both that they do not have records and/or attorney-client privilege. They are just listed as attorney-client privilege for the sake of the above list.

Here are the responses made about the five cases they did respond to:

Gerawan Farming, Inc. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Bd., et al., Case No. 13-CECG-03374 (Fresno Superior Court)

  1. Number of DOJ Attorney Hours= 659.25
  2. Number of DOJ Staff= 5
  3. Cost of DOJ Staff= $111,562.50
  4. The department has no responsive records.
  5. Enclosed is a copy of the decision letter sent to the client.

 Gerawan Farming, Inc. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Bd., et al., Case No. F069896 (Fifth District Court of Appeal)

  1. Number of DOJ Attorney Hours= 415.75
  2. Number of DOJ Staff= 6
  3. Cost of DOJ Staff= $70,677.50
  4. The department has no responsive records.
  5. The department has no responsive records.

Gerawan Farming, Inc. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Bd., et al., Case No. F070287 (Fifth District Court of Appeal)

  1. Number of DOJ Attorney Hours = 78
  2. Number of DOJ Staff= 5
  3. Cost of DOJ Staff= $13,260
  4. The department has no responsive records.
  5. The department has no responsive records.

Lopez v. Shiroma, et al., Case No. 1:14-CV-00236-LJO-GSA (E.D. Cal.) & Lopez v. Shiroma, et al., Case No. 14-16640 (Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal) (both cases are combined into one matter)

  1. Number of DOJ Attorney Hours = 505
  2. Number of DOJ Staff= 4
  3. Cost of DOJ Staff= $85,850
  4. The department has no responsive records.
  5. The department has no responsive records.
[This story has been corrected to update the total spent. The initial story reported a lower number because of a math error]

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Contact David Taub

Phone: 559-492-4037 / e-mail

This story was not subject to the approval of Granville Homes.

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David Taub,
Senior Reporter
Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email

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