Labor and Employment

Hundreds of thousands of farm workers report for backbreaking work each day in fields, orchards, greenhouses and dairies across California. Few workers know anything about state or federal laws established to protect them, and countless workers fall prey to unscrupulous employers. These employers frequently pay workers less than the state mandated minimum wage, deny them overtime pay, do not permit them to take required rest and meal periods, and do not provide workers with proper health and safety training and equipment.

Farm work is among the most dangerous and debilitating work. Unsafe conditions and practices cause injury or sometimes death to hundreds of workers each year. Workers typically fail to report accidents and injuries because they fear reprisal. Others work while injured and in pain because they need the income, lack insurance, and know nothing about workers' compensation. Farm labor contractors and growers often fail to pay even the minimum wages due under State law. To make matters worse, government agencies like the Department of Pesticide Regulation, Cal-OSHA and the Labor Commissioner lack both the resources and an effective strategy to adequately fulfill their enforcement missions. Serious and life-threatening abuses go undetected, and the grievances of an entire sector of farm workers are largely unexplored and without redress.

These unlawful practices are also found in other industries. Construction workers, landscapers, janitors, restaurant and hotel workers, car wash employees, and personal attendants, to name a few, also encounter employers who fail to pay wages due, subject them to dangerous working conditions and disregard their basic labor rights.

CRLA provides hope and assistance to farm workers and other low-wage workers. Over the years, we have recovered millions of dollars of unpaid wages. Equally important, our work has improved conditions for workers across the state. Many workers now receive minimum wage and overtime pay because CRLA enforced these laws against their employers. And CRLA's community workers constantly monitor the fields. While conditions are still difficult, because of our work, many workers now have access to water and bathrooms in the fields, get relief from stoop labor, and receive protection from pesticides.

CRLA helps workers:

• Collect unpaid wages;
• Enforce minimum wage and overtime laws;
• Protect their health and safety rights;
• Enforce their right to rest and meal periods;
• Collect unemployment insurance benefits;
• Oppose sexual harassment and sex discrimination;
• Resist racial, ethnic, religious or other illegal discrimination; and
• Fight retaliation for complaining about pay or working conditions.

CRLA provides a variety of services to farm workers and other low-income workers. The services offered vary by location, so please check with your local office to see what services are available locally.