Winegrape Growers of America - National Council of Agricultural Employers News Brief

“The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.”

— Atticus Finch, from Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”

NCAE News, Legal/Technical, & Other Employer Issues:

An Avon Park woman who admitted to abusing H-2A visa workers as part of her guilty plea to racketeering has been granted permission to leave Florida to work while awaiting sentencing.

Harris Russell Farms (HRF), a catfish farm in the Delta, is being sued by five Black Mississippi farmworkers for alleged racial discrimination.

Regulatory Actions:

Washington state’s agricultural community is preparing for its first year paying time-and-a-half to farmworkers.

Legislative Actions:

A Democrat lawmaker from the central San Joaquin Valley wants to put cash in the hands of eligible farmworkers to help them deal with the devastation of California’s drought.

Former President Ronald Reagan said, “No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size.

A proposal to create driver license reciprocity for foreign agricultural workers looks unlikely to pass the House this session, after a House committee voted against moving the bill forward.

As worsening drought conditions in California and the West take a heavy economic toll on agriculture, state legislators are considering a plan to pay farmworkers $1,000 a month to help them cover the cost of necessities.

Today, Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) hosted a press conference with community leaders and advocacy organizations including the National Catholic Council for Hispanic Ministry’s (NCCHM) Raíces y Alas Congress, Americans for Prosperity, AmericanHort, National Immigration Forum, Raíces, The LIBRE Initiative, and several other members of the Alliance for a New Immigration Consensus to urge action on his legislation, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.

Last week, Oregon joined two other Pacific coast states, California and Washington, in requiring overtime pay for farm workers.

H-2 and Other Worker Status Issues:

Before the COVID-19 pandemic began, employers were having a difficult time finding enough workers.

It’s no secret that U.S. farmers have been burdened with ongoing labor shortages for years.

NCAE This Week:

The House and the Senate were in this week.

It’s probably important to note that the rumblings of ag labor reform are becoming louder on the Hill. This week saw several articles discussing the interest of various members of the Senate getting push from their House colleagues to get something going in the upper chamber.

NCAE followed up on what may be an opportunity by joining with our Ag Workforce Coalition colleagues in a meeting with staff of US Senator Diane Feinstein, a longtime agricultural labor reform advocate. Senator Feinstein authored S. 744 which passed out of the Senate in 2013. The discussion was very positive and the coalition is working on additional meetings with other champions’ offices in the coming weeks.

NCAE hosted another in its series of webinars on agricultural labor topics this week setting a new record for webinar registrations. Bethany Boggess-Alcauter, PhD, an epidemiologist with the National Center for Farmworker Health, shared insights and strategies for protecting workers as temperatures rise.

Next week NCAE will be one of the presenters at OSHA’s “Stakeholder Meeting on OSHA Initiatives To Protect Workers From Heat-Related Hazards”. The meeting takes place on Tuesday and is likely precedent to issuance of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on a new OSHA heat regulation. Having the voice of agricultural employers represented in this discussion will be critical in helping shape the regulatory activity.

Have a great weekend!

Michael

News articles and citations of interest for week ending 2022/04/29

As of April 19, the Drought Monitor map is showing worsening drought for the western half of the state.

A state grant could bring farmer-provided housing to seasonal farm laborers working in Oswego County.

A new Colorado law that allows agricultural workers, including cannabis grow employees, to unionize has led to a public relations crisis for one Denver marijuana company, with staffers and union organizers making headlines by alleging unsafe working conditions and poor treatment.

Our mailing address is:

525 9th Street, NW, Suite 800

Washington, DC 20004

Phone: 202-629-9320

Email: info@ncaeonline.org

Subscribe to the MGGA Quarterly Newsletter

Menu

Helpful Links

Menu

Winegrape Growers of America – National Council of Agricultural Employers News Brief

Memberships

Resources

Forum

Subscribe to the MGGA Quarterly Newsletter

Footer

Menu

Helpful Links