Two mushroom farms that employed the Half Moon Bay mass shooting suspect were cited for "serious" health and safety violations in an investigation stemming from the January workplace attacks, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health announced in a news release Monday.
The two farms had employed Chunli Zhao, a 66-year-old Chinese citizen who allegedly shot five people at one farm, killing four, and then fatally shot three more at a second farm about two miles away. He has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
California Terra Garden Inc., where Zhao worked at the time of the initial shooting, was cited for 22 violations, including five labeled as serious and one labeled as "serious accident-related for failing to have a plan or procedures to immediately notify employees of an active shooter threat and instruct them to seek shelter," according to the release. Cal/OSHA proposed about $114,000 in penalties, the release said.
Concord Farms Inc., the second shooting location and Zhao's former employer, was cited for 19 violations, three of them serious, including one for "failure to address previous incidents of workplace violence and develop procedures to correct and prevent this hazard," the release said. The agency proposed about $52,000 in penalties, the release said.
"Both employers were cited for failing to establish a workplace safety plan that evaluated the threat of workplace violence and train workers in a language they can understand. Both employers were also cited for failure to secure labor camp permits for on-site worker housing," the release said.
Additional enforcement action may be filed as other state agencies continue to investigate the farm work sites, the release said.
CNN has reached out to the two companies for comment.
The investigations grew out of the shootings that, as San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe told local news station KTVU, may have stemmed from a $100 dispute over the cost of repairing a piece of farm equipment involved in an accident at California Terra Garden.
After the shooting, several officials sharply criticized the living conditions on the farms.
"Some of you should see where these folks are living, the conditions they're in. Living in shipping containers," California Gov. Gavin Newsom said at the time. "Folks getting nine bucks an hour ... no healthcare, no support, no services, but taking care of our health, providing a service to each and every one of us every single day."
The state launched an investigation "to ensure workers are treated fairly and with the compassion they deserve," according to a January 26 statement posted on Twitter by Daniel Villaseñor, the governor's deputy press secretary.
At the time, a California Terra Garden spokesperson responded to the accusations, saying the governor's comments did not reflect the living conditions of farmworkers.
"The salary of all employees range from $16.50 to $24," the spokesperson said, adding that workers receive "vacation days, company-sponsored health insurance, life/disability insurance, workman's compensation insurance, and access to a 401(k) plan."
The spokesperson said eight families lived on the property in "mobile homes and large recreational vehicles" equipped with kitchens, bathrooms, showers and "standard living amenities."
"No one lives in anything like shipping containers or tents as was erroneously reported. The families pay approximately $300 a month to rent these living spaces, well below market rate," the company spokesperson said.
Concord Farms has not responded to the allegations but issued a statement shortly after the shooting.
"We are shook and very eager to gain more information from the authorities and their investigations," Concord Farms said in January. "Our hearts are with the victims, their families and the Chinese American community -- from Half Moon Bay to Monterey Park."
