Jun 15 2009
Pennies fuel fire over farm worker wages
The often fiery controversy over wages and working conditions for farm laborers has been rekindled. All the usual players have suited up for the match: growers, a workers coalition, a retailer…even a legislator or two.
This time, we’re talking tomatoes. Grocery chain Whole Foods Market and a farm worker advocacy group–the Coalition of Immokalee Workers–have come together to successfully convince two organic Florida farms to participate in a deal to provide a small increase in wages for tomato pickers working for the participating farms.
How small of a wage increase? Some might say minuscule: an additional 1 cent more per pound of tomatoes picked by workers on the participating farms. And Whole Foods Market–not the farms involved–will foot the bill. All the growers have to do is pass the extra money along to the workers.
But nonetheless, the agreement was met with strong opposition from Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, which represents most of the state’s growers. Apparently the Exchange is not too appy over the prospect of someone else calling the plays and had reportedly threatened to levy a $100,000 fine on any member participating in such an arrangement. While Whole Foods was on board with the deal back in 2008, it took till this growing season to convince any farms to play a role. The two farms taking part–Lady Moon Farms and Alderman Farms–are not members of the Exchange. In addition to the increased wages, the deal calls for the worker’s coalition to be the mediator in any labor dispute. It is perhaps that stipulation, more than the penny-per-pound, that has polarized the players.
Florida provides a majority of the nation’s domestic winter tomato crop. Its workers earn about 47 cents per 32-pound bucket or an average of about $12 an hour for the hardest-working laborers, usually immigrants who receive no health insurance or overtime benefits.
The new agreement’s wage increase only applies to laborers working for the two participating farms. But it’s estimated that if all Florida tomato purchasers decided to take part in the penny deal, farm workers would nearly double their earnings. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers–which gained notoriety for working out similar deals with corporations like McDonald’s and Burger King corporation–hopes the new agreement can be replicated on a larger scale, a sentiment reportedly shared by Whole Foods.
But if grower opposition in Florida is any indication, this is a game that may see extra innings.
This is a move in the right direction. Every cent counts I guess, even though it’s barely enough to make dent in someone’s life.