Oregon farmworkers say they’re overworked and underpaid. They want a seat at the table

Oregon farmworkers want to be more involved in setting industry standards around working conditions and minimum wage.

For generations, farmworkers have worked physically demanding, and sometimes dangerous jobs, harvesting fruit or tending to livestock for one of the top economic sectors in Oregon. Yet they are among the lowest paid workers in the state.

At a House hearing in Salem last week, farm labor advocates asked legislators to establish an agricultural workforce standards board, which would give workers the ability to work out rules directly across the table from employers and government representatives. But farmers and other lobbying groups say the proposal would be a blow to an industry that’s already under financial pressure and overregulated.

Under the proposed legislation, House Bill 2548, Oregon lawmakers would establish an 11-member board made up of farmworkers, farmers and government representatives to set standards around pay, working conditions and training across the entire sector.

Farmworkers, some of whom testified in front of lawmakers, say the board is necessary because, despite protections, it’s hard for them to voice complaints — and some supervisors don’t listen.

“We could not complain because we ran the risk of getting fired. We worked long hours in the cold, the rain and in muddy frozen fields. My hands were numb when planting beets. The water we had to drink tasted spoiled, and we did not have access to nearby toilets,” said Guadalupe Perez, who has worked in the fields for about eight years.

The proposal would also prohibit employers from firing workers without just cause, with some exceptions.

Farmworkers have some protections, but no say

Oregon farmworkers, on average, make $34,120 a year, or about $16.40 an hour, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Department of Agriculture data estimates there are over 72,000 agricultural workers in Oregon.

Workers in Oregon do have protections through the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, or BOLI, which is charged with investigating wage theft claims, and the Oregon Occupation Safety and Health Division, or Oregon OSHA. Rules protect workers laboring in excessive heat or wildfire smoke and set guidelines for pesticide exposure and overtime pay.

But despite those protections, workers don’t have a formal way to raise concerns about wages or some of the harsh conditions they have to work in, said Kathy Lara, a policy analyst at the nonpartisan Oregon Center for Public Policy.

“Farmworkers are still dealing with it being one of the most dangerous industries. So even though we’ve made progress, that’s a reality for many workers today,” Lara said. “The board then becomes an avenue where workers, employers and the government can come together to proactively develop solutions that address those current conditions.”

But some opposing the idea don’t see it that way. Farmers and some lawmakers said the industry is already overregulated, and that they already have to follow strict labor regulations, while at the same time many farm owners find themselves spending more money and taking home less.

“This bill entirely ignores already existing employee protections in Oregon and would result in new mandates that will cripple the agricultural industry,” said Lesley Tamura, a pear grower in Hood River County, and the chair of the Columbia Gorge Fruit Growers Association. “Oregon already has some of the strongest labor laws in the nation, which apply to farmworkers just as they do employees of all other sectors.”

Some lawmakers suggested the board could duplicate the work Oregon OSHA and BOLI already do, but Lara said she disagrees.

“When a worker is going to OSHA, or calling a hotline or BOLI, they’re calling an agency that does not reflect who they are or where they come from,” Lara said. “And that’s the difference from this standards board, in that it would incorporate the workers themselves into a public body that would reflect their experiences, their interests and also their fears.”

Rep. Anna Scharf, R-Amity, whose family farms in the Willamette Valley and also employs workers year-round, said farmers are being unfairly targeted. She said she believes farm labor contractors – third-party companies that recruit employees on behalf of farms – are more likely to break the rules than farmers that employ workers directly.

“I think there’s a handful of those contract labor companies out there that are honest to Pete taking advantage of the people that I saw in there testifying,” she said. “It breaks my heart to see them being taken advantage of, because real family farm owners don’t do that. It’s too hard to find good employees who want to do that hard work.”

Reyna Lopez, the executive director of PCUN, an advocacy group for Oregon farmworkers, said that to the worker, however, it makes no difference who they are employed by.

“Farmworkers are working up to four different sites minimum throughout the year. So it doesn’t really matter if at the apple orchard, that’s a good employer, and then when they go somewhere else, they’re treated badly,” she said. “You would think if these folks are really family to you, you would care how that person is treated in the other farms.”

Lopez said, if anything, the agricultural workforce standards board would level the playing field for everyone.

“When workers and employers unite to set an industry standard, we can actually create a more stable, more innovative, and a more equitable industry that benefits everyone, especially those who have been excluded from collective bargaining rights, which farm workers currently are,” she said.

The board would be a first-of-its-kind in Oregon. California recently became the first in the nation to convene a fast food workers council, while Seattle has a domestic workers standard board.