Hundreds of Tomato Pickers Take to the Streets to Protest Wages

Monday, December 13, 1999

Immokalee, FL -- Hundreds of farmworkers in Immokalee have taken their protest to the street, leaving the fields and refusing to work until their employers agree to talks with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers on stagnant wages.

On Sunday night, hundreds of workers gathered at Coalition offices in downtown Immokalee, then proceeded to march through this dusty, dirt poor town of migrant workers for the next three hours. Their march took them from labor camp to camp, winding through miles of poverty-stricken neighborhoods and uniting co-workers behind their call for dialogue with tomato industry leaders and a fair wage.

Today, those same workers have sworn not to return to work until their bosses agree to meet with community representatives and talk about a raise.

"We don't want another nickel more," said Jose Antonio Salas, a member of the Coalition participating in the action, referring to the 5-cent per bucket raise granted unilaterally by three area growers following similar protests in 1997. "We are demanding that tomato growers show us the respect of sitting with us and talking about our wages. We believe that only through direct and sincere dialogue can we come to a real, lasting solution to our problems as workers in Florida's fields -- the worst of which is without doubt our pay. We also believe that through dialogue we can bring about changes that will truly benefit not just us as workers, but solutions that will in fact help the growers and the industry as a whole."

"We work hard, and we deserve a decent wage and a voice at work," adds Romeo Ramirez, also a member of the Coalition. "We're not asking for anything more than what we already earn for the hard, dangerous work we do."

The workers are calling for a raise in the picking piece rate, the amount paid for every 32-pound bucket of tomatoes a worker can pick and haul to an awaiting truck in a workday. Today, workers are paid an average of 40-45 cents per bucket, a rate that has remained essentially unchanged since 1979. The bucket price would have to be roughly 75 cents today just to have kept pace with inflation over the past twenty years. Recent government reports, on the other hand, show a healthy tomato industry enjoying several years of strong production, good prices, and sustained growth.

One week ago, the Coalition, on the basis of over 1,700 signatures of Immokalee migrant workers, sent area growers a letter requesting talks on wages and other issues. They have received no response. The Coalition also sent a letter to Governor Bush, asking him to add his influence to efforts to bring tomato growers to the table. Governor Bush likewise has yet to respond.
 

Read the Associated Press Article