NY Farm Bureau joins lawsuit regarding collective bargaining

FRITZ MAYER
Posted 11/3/16

ALBANY, NY — The New York Farm Bureau (NYFB) has been granted intervener status in a case brought by the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) on behalf of two workers’ rights groups and …

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NY Farm Bureau joins lawsuit regarding collective bargaining

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ALBANY, NY — The New York Farm Bureau (NYFB) has been granted intervener status in a case brought by the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) on behalf of two workers’ rights groups and farm worker Crispin Hernandez. The lawsuit claims that Hernandez was fired from Marks Farms near Watertown in September 2015 after trying to organize co-workers to address unfair working conditions.

The lawsuit argues that a state law that blocks farm workers from the right to collective bargaining violates the state’s constitution, which says all workers have the right to organize. After the initial lawsuit was filed in May, both Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said they would not fight the NYSCLU lawsuit because they agreed with the determination that the Employment Relations Act is unconstitutional.

NYCLU said in a press release issued on October 24, “Under the New York Constitution, all workers have a right to organize and collectively bargain. But the Employment Relations Act has a carve-out for farm workers that accommodates the racist politics of the Depression Era during which it was passed.”

NYFB does not agree that this law is unconstitutional and stepped in to defend it. NYFB has consistently fought to keep collective bargaining out of the agriculture industry, saying that farming is not like other industries.

In a statement on its website, the organization says, “The state’s farm labor laws were enacted for one reason only. Rules meant to govern manufacturing simply don’t work on farms. If unionized farm workers choose to walk off the job in the middle of harvest season or as the dairy cows need to be milked, what is the alternative for the farmer? They immediately run the risk of losing a season’s harvest or putting the health and safety of their animals in jeopardy. The same reasoning goes for overtime or a mandatory day of rest. Mother Nature doesn’t work by a time clock and that means neither do farmers or their employees who work side-by-side.”

NYFB argues that with many farmers struggling to get by, “farms simply can’t afford additional labor costs, especially combined with the higher minimum wage rollout over the next five years. Farmers also can’t pass along the increases to wholesalers, processors and grocery stores either because of competition from farms in other states and countries.”

On that point, NYCLU says, “Even though farming in New York is a multi-billion dollar industry, with sales of $6.36 billion in 2014, farm workers often earn wages well below the poverty level, and many live in overcrowded labor camps with sweatshop-like conditions. They often must contend with infestations of rats, cockroaches and bed bugs, and no regular access to transportation.”

The NYFB argues that conditions in housing offered to farm workers on most farms are safe, and farm operations offer competitive wages, saying on average farm workers in New York earn $12.39 per hour.

NYCLU did not object to the intervener motion by NYFB, and hopes that the lawsuit will settle the matter. The NYCLU press release said, “The plaintiffs and the NYCLU intend that a decision in favor of the farm workers will be binding on the Farm Bureau—the biggest obstacle that farm workers face to reform—and the decision will therefore prevent the bureau from bringing future legal challenges to farmworkers who defend their right to organize in court.”

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