As 2012 comes to a close, we celebrate a historic and eventful year of progress for farm workers. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your selfless support of La Causa. Your activism and donations made a huge difference.
We observed the 50th anniversary of Cesar Chavez’s United Farm Workers in 2012, with a spectacular three-day constitutional convention last May in Bakersfield, Calif. In addition to hundreds of elected farm worker delegates, it was attended by 1,500 farm workers organizing themselves to win union contracts. We also signed first-time UFW contracts protecting 1,600 workers at four companies. One covered 800 tomato workers at Stockton-based Pacific Triple E Ltd., including pay increases of 12 to 57 percent over the life of the agreement, making Pacific Triple E employees the best paid tomato workers in America. We also renegotiated another six union contracts in the wine grape, mushroom, fruit, vegetable, rose and strawberry industries. All of us are working hard to help thousands more farm workers organize and win union contracts during 2013.
Another historic milestone was on October 8, 2012, when President Obama joined 7,000 people at the farm worker movement headquarters in La Paz to dedicate a portion of the Keene, Calif. grounds as the Cesar E. Chavez National Monument, the 398th unit of the National Park Service, which is operating it in partnership with the UFW’s sister organization, the Cesar Chavez Foundation. While introducing the President we acknowledged the new National Monument in the spirit of honoring Cesar as well as the thousands of farm workers, Latinos and many others who selflessly gave themselves to the cause. The National Monument President Obama dedicated affirms the men and women of our movement who continue laboring daily to keep Cesar Chavez’s work alive by aggressively organizing farm workers, negotiating union contracts and aiding farm workers and other low-income working families in the community.
Please accept our best wishes during this holiday season and for a safe and prosperous New Year.
Arturo & Sonia Rodriguez
United Farm Workers of America