A Minnesota state investigation into farmworker exploitation at a Stearns County dairy farm has resulted in felony charges. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced that Keith Lawrence Schaefer is charged with four counts of wage theft of more than $5,000 and one count of racketeering.
Ellison’s office brought civil action against the Evergreen Acres Dairy in Paynesville, Minnesota, last year, alleging theft of wages and mistreating workers from other countries. Investigators say he failed to pay overtime, withheld pay illegally, and made workers live in overcrowded and deplorable conditions. He also allegedly threatened to call immigration authorities when workers complained about the mistreatment.
A criminal complaint filed in Stearns County this week outlines four consecutive six-month periods from 2022-2023 in which Schaefer reportedly stole $5,000 in wages or more. In one case, an employee never received his final paycheck of $3,000 owed for 204 hours worked in the last pay period.
