The sky was still dark, the hour around 5:20 a.m. Half asleep, I gazed at the fields that were to be worked that day; my coworkers were doing the same. Everyone was wearing their usual long sleeve attire, as well as face masks and caps. While setting up the equipment we were going to need before work, I thought about the fact that me and the other workers were not being paid for the time-consuming labor we did before the actual workday started. The manager, as usual, told us to gather around 6:00 a.m. He showed us the type of crops the owner wanted us to pick that day. After that, it was time to work. It was like a switch had turned on in everyone; they went from being relaxed and laid-back to being quick and focused on their work. Seeing this every day motivated me to work the same way. As the day progressed, the sun was beaming even hotter, and the lunch break could not have seemed further from near. Everyone took this time to refresh themselves with water and electrolyte-rich beverages. Some, however, resorted to their usual ice cold red Tecates to get them through the day. These experiences have shown me how hard that type of work could be, and what many farm workers do to combat the heat. Every time I pass by the fields and see people working them, I feel respect and admiration for those experienced workers who have had to endure that job all their life.
Are farmworkers being valued and treated fairly for their work? What do they have to say about it? Research shows that farmworkers are being undervalued and unprotected against the harsh working conditions of their labor. Agriculture is one of California’s most vital and productive industries, yet many of its workers experience profound challenges in maintaining their health and well-being (Foy). Gabriel is an experienced farmworker that was in the industry for 25 years. Throughout his years as a farmworker, Gabriel was able to see how the conditions of this type of work changed either for the better, or for the worse. Gabriel’s discussion will reflect not only how he feels about the topic, but the opinions many other farm workers in the Imperial Valley share as well. Every time I worked during an agricultural season in the fields, I was able to see that workers are not compensated enough and not protected in bad working conditions such as elevated temperatures, fields that recently received pesticides, and many more. Although the labor of farm workers is essential to many communities of the United States, they are forced to endure bad working conditions at a low pay rate.
In “Lawmakers Take ‘Creative’ Approach to enforcing heat safety rules for California farmworkers,” Rebecca Plevin informs the reader about the way in which bills are being passed to motivate more employers to protect their workers from the heat. The author explains how past bills and legislations have had the purpose to enforce ‘heat safety’ regulations and protections for the farmworkers. He then goes ahead to mention an academic study conducted by UC Merced in 2022 that showed how many employers were found guilty of working their employees without enforcing the heat safety regulations. Furthermore, this study showed that employers were not tracking the temperature throughout the workday, were not informing their workers about the precautions they could take, and did not check on their workers for symptoms of heat illness. This research brought to light the dark truth that employers were not following the law, and nothing was being done about it. In response to these results, lawmakers decided to change the way in which they wrote legislation to protect the workers. Switching from the earlier strategy they first used in 2005 (which just required employers to have shade and water available), lawmakers pushed for a bill that would cause any reasonable employer to make sure to enforce the heat safety rules. Plevin lastly mentions how this new bill ensures that if they do not follow the rules, any heat-illness injury would be presumed as a labor injury, and they would have to give reasonable compensation to the worker. Employers would want to avoid that as much as possible, so they would rather make sure to follow all heat safety rules, and that way there would be more protection across the state for the workers. This was the ‘creative’ approach that Plevin believed could make more employers enforce the heat safety rules if this bill were to pass.
In “Lawmakers Take ‘Creative’ Approach to Enforcing Heat Safety Rules for California Farmworkers,” the author, Rebeca Plevin, includes the experience of farmworker Erika Patricia Deluque Barrios and her encounter with the scorching California heat in the workplace. Deluque Barrios mentions how her employer did not warn her about the hot temperatures and the precautions the workers could have taken. Barrios then went on to get sick from the heat, which caused her to faint and to leave work early that day. As a result, her employer fired her the next day. Barrios admits that she felt sad at first and wishes she fought through the struggle, but then she argued, “People should have dignity and shouldn’t have to put up with so much just for a job” (Plevin). Barrios realized that many people like her need those farm jobs and that is why they conform to their situations and working conditions. Many workers today do not speak up because they fear that like Barrios, they too could lose the job that they so desperately need. However, Barrios believes more people should have dignity, in the way that they should have more self-respect and demand better protection. Barrios spoke up, and the Agricultural Labor Relations Board investigated the issue on the basis of retaliatory firing. Barrios’ actions brought justice and light to an ongoing problem happening in the majority of farm jobs. This reinforces the belief that if farmworkers stand up for themselves, they can create an effect in their unjust and poor working conditions.
A bracero is a person who performs physical labor using his arms (brazos). This term was used in the 1940’s to the 1960’s to describe the Mexican laborers that were brought to the United States as result of a binational deal between the U.S and Mexico. Just like in today’s time, the American public had mixed opinions and feelings on the braceros. Many believed the work they provided was needed for the United States while others criticized them for taking jobs away from the American citizens. However, when making an opinion about braceros, it is important to know their backstory and why they came into the U.S. In 1942, amidst the conflict of WWII, the United States and Mexico reached a deal to bring workers from Mexico to work in the United States. Since many workers had left to serve in the military, they left jobs unoccupied that the U.S seeked to fill with foreign workers. The braceros were brought to work in agricultural jobs. Another industry that received braceros was the railroad industry. Braceros gave their physical labor to build and expand railroads in the U.S. Some might argue that the braceros just came to take away jobs, but the jobs braceros usually had experienced a shortage of personnel because the American people did not want to do these jobs. Another positive impact that braceros caused is that they learned the new skills to work in the U.S, and once it was certified they could work well, the U.S benefited only from braceros who were efficient and knew how to work. That way the business was running efficiently and did not have to deal with workers that did not make the cut. The story of braceros left a legacy of vigorous work during tough times and taught the government how to deal with migrant and immigrant workers in a country full of anti-immigrant sentiment.
On an early Saturday morning, I realized that the day conveyed itself as perfect in order to interview my father, Gabriel. After I woke up and got up from my bed, I went downstairs and saw the sight of both my parents watching TV and sipping on fresh, recently brewed coffee. The truth is that they had been accustomed all their life to waking up early because of their job. After eating breakfast, I suggested to my dad that we go for a ride through the back roads of Imperial and Brawley. The idea seemed to sit well with him, as he said, “Esta bien mijo, vámonos”. He gave me the keys to his car; it was a gray Chevy Silverado. It was cleaner than all his past other ones, since he was not working in the fields anymore and did not get it dirty with mud and dust. “Having your own car makes your job easier,” Gabriel confessed. “You can get a little more rest, and you can leave the workplace in case of an emergency,” he added.
My dad left his parent’s house at 17. He was in urgent need for a job, and he decided to work in the fields since his stepfather had taken him to the fields at an early age. Gabriel worked as a farm worker for 20 years, the reason being that he needed to maintain a family and he sadly did not have even a high school degree. Throughout his experience, he was able to see the trends and changes over time in that job. However, my father is usually not a man that openly expresses his feelings or his thoughts, but I noticed during our conversation that this did not look like the case with this topic.
I decided to structure my questions in a way that would make Gabriel acknowledge some of the problems he faced while working in the fields and how some of them were solved or could be solved today. “In all my years of working in the fields,” Gabriel started. “The biggest issue and the problem that most workers complain about, is about the fact that we get paid the minimum for a job that is very physically demanding and especially important towards the community overall. Using gestures and hand movements, he continued, “You have experienced yourself how difficult it is to perform this job, and how there is so many issues with safety and legality.”
As we passed the recently watered grass-covered fields, I took time to reflect and what Gabriel had just mentioned. It was true; many workers could be underage and would work another someone else’s social security, and they would get so tired or sun-struck that the only they thought about was about the next 15-minute break. Gabriel then reflected on some ways that the government can do to improve the working conditions. “Put simply, what I think this industry needs are an increase of pay. Right now, farm workers are dependent on government programs and housing because they have no type of benefits. If you increase the pay, you invite more workers to reduce the number of underage workers, and you give more opportunities to the workers. It is a win-win scenario,” he then added. In terms of working conditions, he believed that they were slowly getting better with time.
Interviewing my father, Gabriel, reinforced my idea of the problems and issues farm workers are experiencing nowadays. This work teaches you important skills, as work can be difficult, pushing one to be persistent and a hard worker. However, increasing the wages and continuing to improve working conditions can better compensate those who engage in this type of labor. Farm workers have a history of being treated unfairly and poorly. In the case of Gabriel, this was not an exception. He lived through the struggles of what it means to work in the fields, but he did not let the difficulties stop him. He took this bull of back-breaking labor by the horns and pushed through, knowing that if he did not, he was not going to make it living in the U.S. Sure, throughout his time as a farmworker, Gabriel saw some improvements in the industry, but he still believes there’s more changes that can be done in order to further improve the situation of new coming farmworkers. Most people do not think too much about these types of workers. They have never been in a position in which they need to work these jobs and do not stop to question if there is something that needs to be improved about their situation—why would they? However, the research on this topic proves that there are issues to solve and conditions to improve. It is time to start bringing these issues to light and fight for our workers. After all, much of their labor is essential to provide food and economic well-being across the communities and counties of the United States. If you are a farm worker now, what can you do? Never be afraid to speak up against the injustices in the workplace. Punctuality, dedication, and consistency, says Gabriel, are the key skills and traits that will help you be successful and make a name for yourself in these jobs. Learning to develop these qualities may help you currently while more changes are being made to benefit you and all farm workers across America.
Works Cited
Contreras, Raoul L.. "The Contreras Report: Surprise, Legal Mexican Farmworkers?" Imperial Valley Press, sec. Columns, 18 Aug. 2023. NewsBank: Access World News, https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info%3Asid/infoweb.newsbank.com&svc_dat=AWNB&req_dat=C67D103010F04B86902184649D1BAFB6&rft_val_format=info%3Aofi/fmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Actx&rft_dat=document_id%3Anews/1937D3A9F97E0480. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Feldman, Paul. "Imperial County Hungers for Jobs at Harvest Time Agriculture: The Lingering Impact of a Whitefly Scourge has led to the State's Highest Unemployment Rate." Los Angeles Times (pre-1997 Fulltext), Dec 22, 1992, pp. 1. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/imperial-county-hungers-jobs-at-harvest-time/docview/281940751/se-2?accountid=38876. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Foy, Nicole. "California Farmworkers Cope with Wildfire Smoke, Pesticides, Roaches and Rodents, Survey Says." CALmatters, 2023. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/california-farmworkers-cope-with-wildfire-smoke/docview/2772609602/se-2?accountid=38876. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Plevin, Rebecca. "Central Valley Effort Aims to Train Farmworkers to Master the Technology Replacing Fieldwork." Los Angeles Times (Online)Los Angeles Times Communications LLC, 2024. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/central-valley-effort-aims-train-farmworkers/docview/3107412083/se-2?accountid=38876. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Plevin, Rebecca. "Lawmakers Take 'Creative' Approach to Enforcing Heat Safety Rules for California Farmworkers." Los Angeles Times (Online) Los Angeles Times Communications LLC, 2024. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/lawmakers-take-creative-approach-enforcing-heat/docview/3103147849/se-2?accountid=38876. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024
Kay Pricola. "Demand for Migrant Farmworkers Remains High." Imperial Valley Press, sec. Farm, 25 Apr. 2019. NewsBank: Access World News, https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info%3Asid/infoweb.newsbank.com&svc_dat=AWNB&req_dat=C67D103010F04B86902184649D1BAFB6&rft_val_format=info%3Aofi/fmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Actx&rft_dat=document_id%3Anews/17306C4EF62BD7F8. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
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