farmworkers

The family-owned Wholesum Harvest had to meet a checklist of more than 300 standards — including many worker protections — to become the first American farm certified by Fair Trade USA. Workers at its Nogales, Ariz., tomato farm recently received a ch

Not Just For Foreign Foods: Fair-Trade Label Comes To U.S. Farms

1:32pm April 19, 2017

by Nick Romeo

Since 1998, Fair Trade USA has been certifying farms overseas that met its standards for workers and the environment. Now, the group is looking closer to home, starting with an Arizona organic farm.

Dairy operations run 24/7, but federal law excludes its workers from overtime pay.

Washington State Dairy Workers Challenge Their Exemption From Overtime Pay

4:38pm December 09, 2016

by Elizabeth Grossman

The dairy industry runs 24/7, but federal law excludes its workers from overtime pay. A new class-action lawsuit in Washington state is the latest challenge to that law.

Farmworker Maria Diaz works in the pepper fields of Dixon, Calif.

Why California's New Farmworker Overtime Bill May Not Mean Bigger Paychecks

5:05pm August 30, 2016

by Julia Mitric

California lawmakers just passed a landmark bill that would make farmworkers eligible for overtime if they work more than eight hours a day or 40 hours a week. Some farmers say they can't afford that.

More than 40,000 people attended Chavez's funeral on April 29, 1993. The casket was carried through Arizona farmland.

National

Cesar Chavez: The Life Behind A Legacy Of Farm Labor Rights

4:42pm August 12, 2016

by Maureen Pao

From his earliest days picking peas to improving wages and working conditions as a union leader, Cesar Chavez dedicated his life to giving voice to the exploited men and women who grow America's food.

Justino DeLeon, 58, stands in front of his home in Pharr, Texas. A former watermelon picker; he retired from farm work when he fell off a melon truck and hurt his arm.

In South Texas, Fair Wages Elude Farmworkers, 50 Years After Historic Strike

9:34am August 11, 2016

by John Burnett

Farmworkers in South Texas marched 200 miles for better wages and working conditions. But the strike ultimately failed, and workers today face the same problem: growers who systematically underpay.

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Workers sort potatoes in the field, collecting small and large ones in different buckets. Each bucket weighs 30 pounds or so. A worker will shoulder that bucket and dump it into a flatbed truck hundreds of times each day.

National

Inside The Lives Of Farmworkers: Top 5 Lessons I Learned On The Ground

3:13pm July 15, 2016

by Dan Charles

Most of us don't usually get to meet the people who pick our apples, oranges or other seasonal favorites. What are their lives and work like? Dan Charles has spent the past year finding out.

Filipino farmworkers, including Larry Itliong (left), were the first to walk out of vineyards, prompting the Delano Grape Strike. They would join forces with Mexican laborers led by Cesar Chavez to form the United Farm Workers.

National

Grapes Of Wrath: The Forgotten Filipinos Who Led A Farmworker Revolution

2:25pm September 23, 2015

by Lisa Morehouse

Cesar Chavez inspired the world; Larry Itliong inspired Cesar Chavez. In 1965, the Filipino laborer led California grape pickers on a strike that would spark the modern farmworker movement.

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American farms like this iceberg lettuce field owned by Duda Farm Fresh Foods outside Salinas, Calif., are facing a dwindling supply of farmworkers from rural Mexico.

Why An Immigration Deal Won't Solve The Farmworker Shortage

8:01pm April 30, 2013

by Kirk Siegler

Many farmers are cheering government proposals to give thousands of seasonal farmworkers a path to legal status. But even if the bill passes, it won't solve the long-term trend of fewer migrants coming north to work on U.S. farms. Farmers will instead have to learn how to do more with less immigrant labor.

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