Students form alliance for farmers’ labor rights

Skylar Siegel / Contributing writer

Some Floridians may think that oranges are the sole fruit produced in the state, but over 95% of all tomatoes are grown in Mexico, Florida and California.

Others are unaware that Florida farms have had many reports of abusing their farmworkers. According to the National Farmworker Alliance, the most a farm worker can earn in a year is $12,000 by working 10 hours non-stop in the sun with no breaks. They receive 49 cents per bucket of tomatoes picked.

Because of these conditions, Daniela Saczek, junior political science major, started the FIU Student Farmworker Alliance to help gain awareness for the cause.

“I was a site leader for alternative Breaks at FIU and my site was Immokalee. I volunteered at the Coalition of Immokalee Workers […] and got inspired along with members of our aB group and we decided to start a chapter. Since, I became an intern with 2 ally organizations here (just harvest and interfaith action),” said Saczek.

SFA already has the support of companies like McDonalds, Taco Bell, Whole Foods and Burger King as they’ve signed the Fair Food Agreement. Their next goal is to get Publix to sign this agreement.

“It’s a code of conduct that companies abide by which basically gives one more cent per bucket and makes sure that the farmworkers can get breaks and better working conditions,” said Alexandra Floresmeyer Campoy, the marketing/advertising chair of the alliance.“By agreeing to this, there is a system to make sure that the farms these companies buy from are also complying with the code of conduct.”

On  Labor Day, Sept. 3, SFA went to hand-deliver letters to the Publix manager at the Publix across from Modesto Maidique Campus. There were over 100 letters from different people asking them to sign to the Fair Food Agreement provided. SFA is still waiting for their decision and is optimistic.

“We’re a new club on campus with few members so far. So attaining the companies we have so far has definitely been a great success for us,” said Campoy.

Although SFA mainly operates and holds meetings on MMC, they are looking to do more at Biscayne Bay Campus to get more students on both campuses involved.

“Our goal is to end sweatshop conditions and modern-day slavery in the fields by working with the farmers,”said Campoy. “Right now we’re focused on targeting Publix and Chipotle in order to get them to sign the fair food agreement like other corporations have. This is something that students should care about because it’s slavery that’s happening right in Florida.”

SFA wants members and supporters to remember that sometimes the farm workers don’t get paid, and the money they make is barely enough to pay for rent, for their trailers and for food.

“There are little kids working on the farms as well and the workers are sometimes chained up in trucks (that take them to these farms) where they are beaten or sexually harassed,” said Campoy.

SFA has meetings every Tuesday in the Learning Center, Room 309 at 5 p.m. at MMC and they are also at the FIU Farmer’s Market every Wednesday where anyone can become more informed.

The next event held by SFA will be on Oct. 23 in the FL Modern-day Slavery Museum at MMC and students are encouraged to attend.

“These farmworkers sacrifice a lot and risk getting beaten, harassed, and abused to get food on our plates. If SFA was able to get Taco Bell and McDonald’s to comply with us, then we know we can get Publix and Chipotle to do it too,” said Campoy.

Be the first to comment on "Students form alliance for farmers’ labor rights"

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.


*