TWC: UFW and Wonderful Co. demonstrators square off in parking lot during lawsuit hearing

Demonstrators and counter-demonstrators showed up in numbers outside a hearing Wednesday in downtown Bakersfield where one of the area's largest farming companies asked a judge to stop the state from enforcing a union card-check law it says is being misused by the United Farm Workers union. With UFW supporters gathered in one area in front of the Kern County Superior Courthouse located at 1215 Truxtun Ave. and employees of The Wonderful Co. lined up in the adjacent parking lot, Los Angeles-based company argued in court the state should be stopped from enforcing a labor organizing tool Gov. Gavin Newsom authorized in 2022 after UFW supporters marched for 24 days from Delano to the state Capitol. One of the UWF supporters, Cynthia Burgos, wore the UFW flag around her shoulders Wednesday as her daughter stayed close by her side during the demonstration. She said in Spanish that the group was striving to join a union without intimidation from their employers. She said farmworkers are the backbone of California and hopes their voices are heard. Burgos said it was very sad to see Wonderful employees on the other side of the parking lot - chanting "no we can't" to counter the UFW's demonstrators chants of "yes we can." On the other side of the street, Irma Rubia, a custodian for the Wonderful Co. for eight years, called her working conditions "beautiful" and said it was "a blessing." Although she said she could not speak for everyone at Wonderful Co., she said she and many of her co-workers are happy with their working environment. "We're not fighting them (UFW); we're just happy with where we're at," Rubia said. Wonderful hopes to halt implementation of its first labor contract with the UFW and pause a hearing before the Agricultural Labor Relations Board, whose members are defendants in Wednesday's court proceedings. In March the ALRB certified the UFW's representation of more than 600 workers at Wonderful's Wasco-based nursery operation. The company says the UFW's unionization drive succeeded only because many of Wonderful's nursery workers signed UFW registration cards thinking they were applying to receive federal farmworker benefit checks. But the UFW says the employees were coerced by the company as part of an anti-union campaign. It says the card check law helps protect employees from employer intimidation during unionization votes. More than their disagreement is at stake: If Wonderful's suit succeeds, the law as written would be declared a violation of state and federal constitutional rights to due process. The ALRB has not commented publicly on the lawsuit in Kern County Superior Court. On Wednesday, it and state Attorney General's Office did not respond to requests for comment. Wonderful said in a statement the court on Wednesday acknowledged the serious issue its lawsuit raises with regard to the card check law. "Our motion is centered on ensuring that the extreme flaws inherent in the existing card check law are considered and addressed before it is further applied by the UFW at the expense of farmworkers," the company stated.