UFW seeks assistance for California pickers after freeze

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.laborradio.org/node/5126

UFW seeks assistance for California pickers after freeze

By Jesse Russell

The United Farm Workers are seeking help for an estimated 20,000 farm workers and their families after the recent freeze. While growers can apply for relief through emergency declarations, the UFW says workers who pick the citrus crops have little aid. The union is seeking support as it asks U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein to assist in making sure federal assistance is set aside for unemployment insurance, rent, mortgage, and utilities assistance, and a food distribution network for impacted families.

[jody]

1. Are all of the 20,000 workers U.S. citizens? n/t

[Omaha Steve]

2. I'm not sure, I found these so far

I remember when I boycotted grapes in the 60's, I didn't care if hungry children were legal or not.


http://www.ufw.org/_board.php?mode=view&b_code=org_key&b_no=2392&page=&field=&key=&n=

And this:

Growers can apply for relief under emergency declarations and many have insurance to cover some of their losses. There is little or no aid for the farm workers who pick the crops. These farm workers are devastated. No crops to pick, means no money for rent or utility bills, no warm coats for their children and no food for their tables. Workers are worried. These are their stories:

"I had never seen the things that are happening right now. All the fruits and vegetables are freezing and dying and affecting all of us...The economy is very hard right now because everything is very expensive and if we do not have work we are not having any earning."--Daniel Navarrete, strawberry worker

"The temperatures drop to the mid 20s at night but we can't afford to turn on the heater because it is too expensive....I don't know how we are going to be able to get by."--Graciela Ramirez, Citrus worker, mother of six

"I'm getting worried now. Both my mother-in-law and I work in the citrus industry...I've started to look for work but there aren't any jobs, all we know is field work and there aren't any oranges to pick, sort or pack. I can get $118 every two weeks from unemployment benefits but it is not nearly enough to cover my $742 mortgage and the $250 in monthly gas and electric bills. I'm considering moving out to Las Vegas, NV to find work...I'll have to leave my children behind; I don't want to take them from the only home they know. I haven't told my children that I may have to go to Las Vegas because of the citrus freeze, I know that they will cry non-stop and I don't think I could take that. I'll have to make a decision next week." -- Guadalupe Florez, citrus worker, widow, mother of three, lives with mother-in-law

"During the last citrus freeze my family and I received a lot of help from the UFW. They assisted us in getting help to make four months of our mortgage payments. We also got help with our utility bills. During the months of the freeze the UFW helped me find employment and my family received periodic food donations. I am confident that the UFW will help us get through this freeze once again."--Mirna Vazquez, Citrus worker, mother of three

We need your help to respond to this dire situation and make a difference for Daniel, Graciela, Guadalupe, Mirna and thousands of other farm workers. Your donation can help us lobby for legislative solutions to help the workers both on a California and federal level. It can help us to do worker outreach—including possibly going door to door to assess the situation. Your donation can help us organize communities to get more resources for these suffering workers, including from private organizations. It can help us hold press conferences and get the worker voices and stories out to the media.

Please fund our efforts to win badly needed assistance for these workers. We’d very much appreciate your sending a gift of $25, $35, $50, $100, or even $250 to help us meet this unanticipated need. Thank you.

Please make your donation today!


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[jody]

3. Thanks, for the info. I'm going to write my senators & rep and remind them that workers need aid

just as much as or perhaps more than land owners.

[Cha]

4. Good Luck! So sorry this had

to happen to the California crops!

[Gormy Cuss]

5. Ah, the other side of the story.

Some news reports framed the citrus crop loss as another sign that there weren't ENOUGH pickers to remove all the fruit before the frost. No mention of the fact that the season would also be shortened and the same farm workers wouldn't have anything to pick for quite a few weeks.

[pfitz59]

6. The trees are the warehouse!

Oranges are left on the trees until ready to ship. Once picked they start to rot, but on the tree they stay fresh for several months.

[Gormy Cuss]

7. Except of course when they're damaged by frost

which is what happened this month. The fruit will rot within a few days after they thaw. I've been watching it happen on my own backyard trees.