What does Arizona law SB 1070 have to do with the lettuce crop in Yuma? At first glance, not a lot. But when the harvest season for lettuce and other vegetables comes around in November, that could change. If SB 1070 is implemented, many farmworkers without legal immigration status—or with... Continue »
That's right, you heard me. Stephen Colbert has accepted the United Farm Workers' creative challenge to Americans of all stripes to head out to the fields and try their hands at picking fruit, if they want their danged jobs back so badly. Continue »
That's right, the UFW has commenced what they are calling the "Take Our Jobs" campaign, an unprecedented effort to bring attention to the real issues of immigration in agriculture. If it turns out that Americans do take them up on the offer, kudos to them for helping jobless... Continue »
Lots going on today in immigration-- here's a quick recap. Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis announced a set of new farm worker rules, including the rollback of a 2008 Bush-era reversal in labor oversight for agricultural workers in the United States. The measure was promptly heralded as a... Continue »
As the immigration debate heats up this year, America's Voice today releases a special report, "Immigration Reform: Know the Players," providing an indispensable reference for anyone following the issue of immigration reform. The series, which was originally published in Spanish on MaribelHastings.com in eight thematic installments, provides background information, statistics,... Continue »
House proponents of comprehensive immigration reform are set to unveil an ambitious bill Tuesday that calls for a pathway to legalization for illegal immigrants, family reunification policies and another push for the controversial AgJOBS program, which would grant temporary immigration status to undocumented farm workers. Continue »
There is no doubt that some native-born workers compete with some unauthorized immigrants for the same jobs. But the vast majority do not. And many businesses, both large and small, depend on the purchasing power that unauthorized workers wield. Immigrants didn't cause the current economic recession, and scapegoating them... Continue »
The debate over legalizing farm workers has always been marked by the controversial question of labor conditions and migrants' lives, health and housing. But this time, labor organization and farmers are in agreement that passing an AgJOBS bill is a shared necessity. Continue »
In a letter to Obama, CEOs of some 70 high-tech companies, including Intel, Microsoft Corp. and Dell Inc., urged the president to speed up stimulus spending and focus on policies that they feel can help spur long-term growth, such as promoting free trade and overhauling immigration rules to make... Continue »
Farmworker Justice, an advocacy group for those who harvest our nation's food, slammed a new series of midnight regulations by the Bush Administration. The regulations would slash wages and cut protections for the already-vulnerable workers who bring food to our tables. Now is not the time for throw-backs to... Continue »