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The climate
change-induced summer heat wave is coming. And while it plans
to spare no one, one particular population will bear the brunt
of its fury: the people who pick our fruits and vegetables.
According to scientists, forecasts predict that the western
U.S. states — including California, home to most of the
nation's agricultural production — will likely reach
temperatures of 25 degrees above
average this summer. Weather in the
Central Valley of California, one of the most productive
agricultural regions in the entire world, has already roared
into triple-digit temperatures this year, up to a
whopping 130 degrees Fahrenheit in some
places.
These are temperatures that no
living being should be forced out into, yet Big Ag
corporations are giving these workers no other
choice. Farm laborers do not recieve steady salaries
or hourly wages, instead being paid "by the pail" — meaning
how much they pluck each day. On top of that, they do
not receive workplace benefits like paid time off, even for
sickness or natural disasters. Extreme weather events
force these workers to miss, on average, two weeks of (unpaid)
work each year. Yet many families can't afford to miss those
wages, meaning they must venture out into the blistering,
deadly heat anyway. It has also
historically meant working during severe wildfires, even when
the air is choking and packed with toxic chemicals.
Meanwhile, their
corporate employers are raking in the profits. When
agriculture is called "big business," that's an
understatement. The two most profitable agricultural
corporations in the U.S. — Cargill and Tyson Foods — bring in
upwards of $42 billion and $113 billion in
revenue, respectively, each year. But rich executives
aren't sharing that wealth with their hard-working mostly
immigrant, laborers. Instead they're hoarding these gains for
themselves, while continuing to stretch and squeeze their
workers to the breaking point. Sign the petition to demand these workers'
extremely rich employers finally provide them with full
benefits, including paid time off, healthcare, and
salaries!
Thank you,
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Miranda The Care2 Petitions Team
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P.S.
Farmworkers are forced to choose between their health and
safety, and "per pail" wages to feed their families. That's just not right — sign the petition
now. |
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