The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) cited Superbee Contracting LLC, of Moxee in Yakima County, on June 16 with breaking six different farmworker protection laws involving nearly 1,200 workers across 15 farms in Benton, Yakima, Walla Walla, and Franklin counties, as well as in Hermiston, Ore.

The L&I citation is on top of federal criminal charges in a separate farmworker exploitation case against Superbee’s controller and business agent, Giovanna Sierra Carrillo, also known as Giovanna Sierra. Those charges stem from her work as an official with another farm labor contracting company, Harvest Plus LLC, which has a history of compliance issues with L&I.

The Yakima woman pleaded guilty in April to fraud in contracting foreign laborers and to aggravated identity theft in her work at Harvest Plus. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 24 in U.S. District Court in Richland.

Vulnerable workers

“These are serious violations affecting the welfare of particularly vulnerable workers. Many are from another country and don’t speak English,” said Bryan Templeton, L&I’s Employment Standards Program manager, of the L&I charges.

Farmers often hire contractors to recruit, employ, and transport domestic and foreign laborers to work on their farms. L&I licenses these farm labor contractors, who must follow laws that protect agricultural laborers.

“Workers deserve to know what kind of work they’ll be doing, when and where they’ll work, how much they’ll be paid, and other vital job information. This information is critical for these workers to know if they are being treated fairly.”

L&I investigation finds false information on license applications

During an investigation into Superbee, L&I found that the business lied on its farm labor contractor licensing application, saying it did not transport workers when in fact they did. Liability insurance is required to protect workers if a contractor is going to transport them, and Superbee did not have any coverage.

L&I also found that the company hid the fact that the owner of Harvest Plus LLC had a financial interest in Superbee.

Superbee violations

The Superbee violations, which occurred over the course of 2023 and 2024, carry a total of $692,750 in penalties. They include:

• Failing to provide any required written information on work location, type of crops, specific job tasks, housing, transportation, and the amount to be paid to 702 workers.
• Giving only some of the required information to another 487 employees.
• Failing to provide proof that the business gave pay statements to any of its nearly 1,200 workers.
• Transporting workers without having liability insurance.
• Hiring an unlicensed farm labor contractor.

Esther Carrillo, of Moxee, the mother of Giovanna Sierra Carrillo, is listed as the owner of Superbee Contracting LLC. Superbee is no longer believed to be in business. The company has 30 days to appeal the violations and penalties.

Extensive ties between Superbee and another labor contractor accused of wrongdoing

L&I’s Farm Labor Contractor program found extensive links between Superbee and Harvest Plus LLC. In addition to undisclosed financial ties, Superbee began operating as a labor contractor after L&I denied Harvest Plus’s application to work as a labor contractor in 2023.

Harvest Plus LLC was owned by Francisco Rodriguez Martel and Esmeralda Rodriguez. L&I denied renewal of their farm labor contractor license in April 2023 and January 2024 after a history of issues with their applications and farm labor contractor requirements.

In 2025, L&I again rejected an application from Rodriguez Martel to operate Harvest Plus LLC as a farm labor contractor. The reason: the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) had banned the company from participating in the H-2A temporary worker program and issued a $252,000 fine for multiple violations.

The Labor Department found the contractor provided workers with unsafe, moldy housing, deducted pay or withheld wages illegally, and committed other violations.

L&I cites farm labor contractor with more than $94,000 in penalties

In October 2025, L&I cited a third company, Harvest Plus Contracting LLC, of Kennewick, with seven farm labor contractor violations allegedly affecting 329 employees in 2024 and 2025.

The owner of that company is named Esmeralda R Rivera. She has appealed the violations, which carry $94,250 in penalties.

Rivera and Harvest Plus LLC owner Rodriguez Martel were both Superbee employees in 2023 and 2024, according to Superbee company documents.

In addition to the financial ties and management connections, multiple farmers told the agency that Superbee was previously called Harvest Plus.

Federal criminal charges allege visa fraud and exploitation of foreign workers

A federal criminal indictment on Feb. 11 charged Giovanna Sierra Carrillo and co-defendants with fraudulently obtaining temporary work visas from the federal H-2A program and illegally transporting more than 500 temporary laborers from Mexico to eastern Washington.

The 51-count indictment alleges Giovanna Sierra Carrillo and co-defendants Francisco Rodriguez Martel and Erica Cisneros, both from the Tri-Cities area, committed the offenses from 2022 to 2024 through Harvest Plus LLC.

Many of the laborers they hired worked overtime without pay, were forced to work in extreme heat without access to clean water, and were exposed to chemical pesticides without proper protection, according to the Department of Justice release.

Workers were threatened they’d be reported to immigration enforcement to ensure they wouldn’t alert L&I and other state authorities about the illegal work conditions, according to the indictment’s “forced labor” charges against Rodriguez Martel and his wife, Esmeralda Rodriguez.

Verify farm labor contractors are licensed with L&I

Knowingly hiring an unlicensed farm labor contractor can result in civil and/or criminal penalties, including those of the unlicensed contractor. Check if farm labor contractors are licensed at L&I’s farm labor contractor verification web page.