Dozens of congressional leaders signed a letter urging the USDA to prioritize funding for farmworker safety.
Credit: Photo by David Rodriguez, The Salinas Californian
Two farmworkers sit at the end of strawberry field rows for their lunch break in Watsonville. Author: Kate Cimini | CalMatters Updated: 12:43 PM PST January 14, 2021
SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. Farmworkers lost out on up to $1.5 billion in grants and loans for COVID-19 safety needs after the USDA committed funds earmarked as such for a food box program.
The USDA announced on Jan. 4 that it planned to spend $1.5 billion in a fifth round of the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. It has yet to commit additional funding for farmworker safety.
Yard signs at polling place in South Phoenix. Credit: Peter Costantini.
PHOENIX, Arizona, Jan 12 2021 (IPS) - The Valley of the Sun is a vast, flat stretch of Sonoran Desert, etched by arroyos and studded with small, jagged peaks. It spans about 50 miles (80 kilometers) west to east and 40 miles (64 kilometers) north to south in south-central Arizona (the state that borders southern California to the east). After cruising through southward on one of the tangle of freeways that vein the expanse, we can leadfoot it another 100 miles (161 kilometers) southeast to Tucson across much the same hardscape, only gradually gaining elevation. The saguaro cacti grow more thickly, but the higher cordilleras maintain a discreet distance most of the way.
Farm workers union sues Foster Farms after COVID-19 outbreaks
In court documents, employees claim COVID testing among workers is inconsistent and that the facility fails to enforce social distancing.
KFSN
LIVINGSTON, Calif. (KFSN) Foster Farms is now facing a lawsuit and possible restraining order after nearly 400 of their employees have tested positive for COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic and at least eight have died.
Now the United Farm Workers Union has asked in a lawsuit for an immediate temporary restraining order in an attempt to force the chicken processing plant to follow state health regulations.
The Foster Farms meatpacking plant in Livingston remains on Merced County s active outbreak list. Since the start of the pandemic, it has been the site of hundreds of COVID-19 cases and 8 deaths.
Commentary: Texas will never forget Genoveva Puga s harrowing path to activism
James C. Harrington, Juanita Valdez-Cox and Rebecca Flores, For the Express-News
Dec. 12, 2020
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Genoveva Puga sobs after locating her son Juan Torrez’s burial site at the pauper’s cemetery in Edinburg. Torrez was killed in 1977 harvesting fruit at the Donna Fruit Co.Courtesy of LUPE /UFWShow MoreShow Less
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Genoveva Puga, second from left, sought justice for the death of her son at the Donna Fruit Co. while harvesting citrus.Courtesy of LUPE /UFWShow MoreShow Less
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Genoveva Puga, center, became a voice for farm workers’ rights after her son Juan Torrez was killed at the Donna Fruit Co. while harvesting citrus.Courtesy of LUPE /UFWShow MoreShow Less