Wonderful Nurseries LLC has filed a federal complaint challenging the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) over its refusal to stay the certification of the United Farm Workers (UFW) union as the exclusive bargaining representative for the company’s agricultural employees. The case centers on alleged due process and equal protection violations under the U.S. Constitution and raises critical questions about the ALRB’s handling of union certifications under California’s controversial Majority Support Petition (MSP) or “card check” system. 

Wonderful argues that the ALRB’s certification process failed to account for significant objections raised by its employees. These include claims that workers were misled into signing union authorization cards, with some employees asserting they were told the cards were necessary to secure federal COVID-19 relief payments rather than union representation. Despite these objections, the ALRB certified the UFW based solely on a comparison of payroll records against submitted authorization cards, a process Wonderful contends lacked transparency and verification safeguards. 

Wonderful also challenges the ALRB’s decision to proceed with mandatory mediation and conciliation (MMC), a process that could result in a state-imposed collective bargaining agreement without employee ratification or employer consent. According to the complaint, the ALRB’s refusal to delay the certification or the MMC process until these objections were fully resolved amounts to an unconstitutional deprivation of due process. 

This lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, could have significant implications for California’s agricultural labor landscape, particularly regarding the use of card check certifications and the ALRB’s regulatory framework. Wonderful’s case seeks not only to protect its constitutional rights but also to highlight procedural flaws in the card check system that undermine both employer and employee autonomy.