On this edition of Your Call, we’ll continue our series on worker organizing. California Governor Gavin Newsom has until September 30th to sign or veto AB2183, a bill that would allow farmworkers to unionize free from intimidation. The Governor is feeling the pressure after President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Speaker Pelosi announced support for the bill.
Farmworkers continue to pressure the Governor to sign the bill. They are on Day 17 of 24-hour vigils in four cities, including Sacramento, the State Capitol. The vigils began after farmworkers and their supporters made it Sacramento after marching for 24 days in 100+ degree heat. Less than one percent of farmworkers belong to a union. They make between $20-25,000 a year for doing backbreaking work in the extreme heat.
Then we'll discuss the FAST Recovery Act, a groundbreaking new law that could raise wages to $22 an hour for California's fast food workers. On Labor Day, Governor Newsom signed AB 257, which gives fast-food workers two seats on a 10-person council to decide wages, hours, and working conditions. It’s the first of its kind bill in the country. The Fight for 15 movement and many other labor organizations have spent a decade fighting for this bill.
Guests:
Teresa Romero, president of United Farm Workers
Sandro Flores Avonce, organizer with Fight for $15, fast food worker, and Cal State Los Angeles graduate
Saba Waheed, research director at the UCLA Labor Center, co-host of the Re:Work podcast, and co-author of Fast-Food Frontline: COVID-19 and Working Conditions in Los Angeles
Web Resources:
Los Angeles Times: Biden turns tables on Newsom by backing California farmworker bill
CalMatters: Newsom feels the heat on farm labor measure
Vox: California aims to transform how fast food workers are treated
UCLA Labor Center: Fast-Food Frontline: COVID-19 and Working Conditions in Los Angeles
