Welcome to our e-newsletter about farm worker justice in the Northwest and nationally. Your advocacy and support is needed and is making a difference! Contact us.
We are a faith-based farm worker solidarity organization working for justice with the local farm worker community in the Northwest
Meet and Greet with Farm Workers and Their Allies - note updated time in Oregon
Here is your opportunity to come out and meet and greet farm workers and their allies and learn about the current issues facing farm workers in Washington, Oregon and nationally.
Farm Worker Ministry Northwest and National Farm Worker Ministry (NFWM) are hosting these community events in conjunction with our farm worker partners, Community to Community, Familias Unidas por la Justicia and PCUN. NFWM will be conducting videotaped interviews with farm workers for their Harvest of Justice curriculum.
Please join us for fun, fellowship, education and solidarity!
Monday - August 29, 2022 – Bellingham & Everson, Washington
10 am - meet at Community to Community Centro Solidario office
203 W. Holly, Suite 311, Bellingham, WA
Learn about current farmworker issues
Noon – walk with a delegation from the C2C office (address above) to Bellingham City Hall, 210 Lottie Street Bellingham, WA
Present the “Immigration makes us strong campaign”
3 pm -- visit Cooperativa Tierra y Libertad, a worker-owned cooperative farm, 1045 Central Rd Everson, WA
Sit in on National Farm Worker Ministry videotaping of interviews regarding immigration issues and children on the Northern Border and worker ownership of farms
Tuesday - August 30, 2022 – Mt. Vernon, Washington
10am - Meet at C2C Promotoras Centro Solidario office
224 Stewart Rd, Mt. Vernon, WA
Learn about farmworker issues and visit with promotoras and farmworkers who belong to the Familias Unidas por la Justicia farmworker labor union
Sit in on National Farm Worker Ministry videotaping of interviews regarding the national H2A farmworker visa program and child labor
End at noon
Wednesday – August 31, 2022 - Woodburn, Oregon -- NEW TIME
3 - 5 pm - Meet at the PCUN office, Oregon’s farmworker labor union 300 Young St, Woodburn, OR
Participate in training and Q & A on heat and smoke stress and overtime pay for farm workers.
Watch the e-news for late breaking time changes, or email the Rev. Connie Yost to get the latest schedule
Ostrom Mushroom Farm Workers Continue Their Struggle
Mushroom farm workers at Ostrom Mushroom Farms in Sunnyside WA are demanding a workplace free from threats, excessive pressure, harassment and retaliation.
Last week, Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced that his office filed a lawsuit against Ostrom for wage theft, gender discrimination and illegally displacing local workers.
Be sure to sign the workers' petition. Ostrom Mushroom Farms workers want the company to know that people nationally are paying attention to this issue. Stand with them in solidarity. Sign their petition today.
Ban Organophosphate Pesticides From Our Foods
Organophosphate pesticides are inherently toxic to humans and pose a risk to children’s neurodevelopment and normal neurological function. At allowable levels of exposure, organophosphates can cause acute poisoning to farm workers, even when workers wear the most protective equipment. What is more, people in the United States are exposed to organophosphates through their diet, even if they don’t live near fields where organophosphates are sprayed. These chemicals are found in numerous food products sold in the United States.
National Farm Worker Ministry is partnering with Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, Earthjustice, Farmworker Association of Florida and others to stop these neurotoxins from entering our food systems. Please ask your representatives to support ‘‘Ban All Neurotoxic Organophosphate Pesticides From Our Food Act’’ or ‘‘BAN OPs From Our Food Act’’ for short. This bill will be introduced soon and will prohibit the use of organophosphate pesticides in food. Our partners have asked us to specifically focus on the representatives who sit on the House Committee on Energy & Commerce.
Now is the perfect time to contact your representative while they are on a state work period until Sept. 5. Make an appointment in their home office in your state to ask him or her to become a co-sponsor. And let us know if you do this by contacting jtaylor@nfwm.org.
National Farm Worker Ministry Resources Now Available
Harvest of Justice 2022: Child Labor in Agriculture
Harvest of Justice (HOJ) is our annual educational program that provides supporters with multiple resources, so they can help their faith group and community learn about issues affecting farm workers. HOJ is an opportunity to raise consciousness, commitment, and contributions. The Harvest of Justice Season falls every year between Labor Day on Sept. 5 and World Food Day on Oct. 16. This year’s theme is Child Labor in Agriculture and all our resources are now available.
Justice for Migrant Women reports that there are between 300,000 and 500,000 child farm workers in the U.S., but the specific number is unknown. What we do know is that these children face many work hazards and lack many basic child labor protections. Every day, around 33 children are injured doing farm work. And a child working in agriculture dies about every three days.
Harsh working conditions, economic hardships, living in isolation, and discrimination are just a few of the stressors farm workers and their children experience. Additionally, farm worker children often struggle in school due to work and life stressors.
But you can stand in solidarity with farm workers and help end child labor. By following along with Harvest of Justice 2022: Child Labor in Agriculture, you will learn how you can make a positive difference in the working and living conditions of farm workers and their families.
One of the solutions to help reduce child labor in agriculture is to ask Congress to support the Children's Act for Responsible Employment and Farm Safety, H.R. 7345, CARE Act, which would end the exemption for exploitative child labor in U.S. agriculture.
While retaining exemptions for family farms and education programs, the CARE Act would bring age and work hour standards for children in agriculture up to the standards for child working in all other industries and provide greater protection against physical harms.
Another way to help reduce child labor in agriculture is to support farm worker led campaigns that improve their living and working conditions, so that farm workers don’t have to ask their children to work in the fields in order to meet financial needs.
NFWM plans to host a webinar on Tuesday, September 27th about child labor in agriculture and all the ways supporters can take action to help farm workers and their families.
Click here for all the 2022 Harvest of Justice Child Labor in Agriculture resources
‘First Time Home,’ a short film created by American children of Triqui farmworkers, offers an unscripted, authentic glimpse into life for farmworker families—and why people choose to sacrifice their lives in Mexico for opportunities up North.
There's Work to Be Done!
¡Sí, Se Puede! / Yes, We Can!
NFWM and FWM-NW Supports These Boycotts led by our Farm Worker Partners.
We hope you will, too!
