On Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:24:09 -0500, wrote:

On Sun, 23 Jan 2011 23:25:50 -0800, wrote:

On Mon, 24 Jan 2011 00:46:54 -0500, wrote:

On Sun, 23 Jan 2011 21:25:11 -0800, wrote:

On Sun, 23 Jan 2011 23:29:08 -0500, wrote:

On Sun, 23 Jan 2011 20:11:26 -0800, wrote:

My post was two years old because Harry's story was two years old.
They got their raise and the story would be history if the UNION would
actually give the money the producers have already paid to the
pickers. They are sitting on two million dollars, waiting for the
pickers to get deported so they can keep it I guess.

Ah... I knew you'd get around to blaming unions for something. It was
just a matter of time.

It is a fact, read the stories. Why aren't you mad about that if you
are really as concerned for the pickers? They got their raise almost 2
years ago and the union took the money.

Don't know of any documented case of any union sitting on "millions"
that are owned to undocumented workers... feel free to post the links.


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/19/us...ml?_r=3&ref=us

"Though the hamburger chains and others agreed to the increase years
ago, the money they have been paying — an estimated $2 million now
held in an escrow account — could not be distributed to tomato pickers
until the state’s largest trade association, which acts as a
middleman, agreed to lift a ban preventing their farms from passing
along the extra wages. "

It's requiring me to log in, so I can't read the article.

IMMOKALEE, Fla. — After fighting for more than a decade for better
wages, a group of Florida farmworkers has hashed out the final piece
of an extraordinary agreement with local tomato growers and several
big-name buyers, including the fast-food giants McDonald’s and Burger
King, that will pay the pickers roughly a penny more for every pound
of fruit they harvest.


A market in Immokalee, a town that has long been home to many of the
state’s 33,000 tomato pickers.

Farm laborers are among the lowest-paid workers in the United States,
and the agreement could add thousands of dollars to their income.

Though the hamburger chains and others agreed to the increase years
ago, the money they have been paying — an estimated $2 million now
held in an escrow account — could not be distributed to tomato pickers
until the state’s largest trade association, which acts as a
middleman, agreed to lift a ban preventing their farms from passing
along the extra wages.

That happened in November, when the farmworkers’ group, the Coalition
of Immokalee Workers, and the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, a trade
association, completed details of a code of conduct that included not
only the wage improvement but also guarantees of increased workplace
protections — like minimum-wage guarantees and a zero tolerance policy
on forced and child labor — for the laborers.

Some labor experts said the agreement could set a precedent for
improving working conditions and pay in other parts of the agriculture
and food industries, nationally and worldwide.

“This can and will be extended to other areas of the agricultural
industry,” said Chris Tilly, director of the U.C.L.A. Institute for
Research on Labor and Employment, who said this type of agreement was
uncommon. “There are potentially interesting implications for supply
chains that reach outside this country.”

Tomatoes are a $1.3 billion industry in the United States, and Florida
farmers lead the nation, producing $520 million worth of the crop,
followed by California. Workers earn, on average, an estimated $10,000
to $12,000 a year. The new agreement could increase earnings to about
$17,000 if new buyers come to the table.

At least nine major buyers — including the Whole Foods Market
supermarket chain, as well as McDonald’s and Burger King — have been
paying the penny-per-pound price increase. Still, some in the industry
worry, the unusual agreement could be undermined if enough buyers turn
to competitors in California and Mexico willing to sell tomatoes at a
cheaper price.

“We hope that socially responsible businesses will purchase tomatoes
from our growers and not cheaper tomatoes from Mexican farm
competitors,” said Reggie Brown, executive vice president of the
Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, a trade association that represents
80 percent of the state’s tomato farmers. “Everybody in the system has
to be invested for it to work.”

Whole Foods supported the coalition because helping laborers earn a
better wage was in line with the company’s core values and did not
cost much, said Karen Christensen, a regional vice president.

“The impact of the penny per pound is a minimal addition to our
purchase,” Ms. Christensen said. “We have not seen a noticeable impact
on the consumer.”

Maisie Greenawalt, vice president of the catering company Bon Appétit,
which serves hundreds of colleges in the United States, said her
company was paying more for tomatoes because it had a policy to work
with agricultural companies that follow ethical practices.

“Having a food system that keeps prices artificially low by enslaving
workers is not acceptable,” Ms. Greenawalt said.

But not everyone is on board. Maria Brous, a spokeswoman for Publix
Super Markets, based in Lakeland, Fla., said the extra money
farmworkers want to be paid should come from the growers who employ
them.

Regardless, Ms. Brous added, whatever the tomatoes cost, “customers
will make their own purchasing decisions.”

The Immokalee agreement is a result of a 15-year campaign for better
pay and working conditions for the roughly 33,000 tomato pickers in
the state. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers represents about 4,000
of those workers, but the agreement will cover all tomato pickers who
work for growers that are members of the trade association, as well as
those employed by independent farms participating in the agreement.

The agreement between laborers, growers and buyers is unique because
it resembles a legally binding contract that includes an
accountability mechanism to ensure that tomato pickers will be treated
and paid fairly, said Prof. Caroline Bettinger-Lopez, director of the
Human Rights Clinic at the University of Miami School of Law.

Cruz Salucio, a member of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, said the
agreement had created a new feeling of respect between workers and
growers.

“In the past, the companies would shift blame to the contractors and
wipe their hands clean of any complaints of abuse,” Mr. Salucio said.
“With these agreements, the growers have to work with us, and the
workers can report abuses without fearing reprisals.”

Immokalee, about 30 miles southeast of Fort Myers, has been drawing
workers, many of them from Latin America, since the 1950s. The workers
gather nearly every morning before dawn in a dusty parking lot in
front of the La Fiesta No. 3 market waiting to board the buses that
will ferry them to the fields.

Leonel Perez, a 25-year-old from Guatemala, has worked on farms since
2005, often pulling 16-hour days for relatively little pay. For the
last four years he has also worked with the Coalition of Immokalee
Workers to organize his peers.

“Even though it’s a small increase, we see that they’re treating us
fairly,” Mr. Perez said. “Now we’re working comfortably, and
contractors can’t abuse their power or reprimand us unfairly.”

Carolina Hidalgo contributed reporting.

"That happened in November." And, you're still upset? That was how
many years ago again??