Oakland City Council to pass resolution in support
of the Fair Treatment for Farm Workers
OAKLAND, CA – On June 7, 2011, the Oakland City Council is expected to pass a resolution supporting the Fair Treatment for Farm Workers Act, or SB 104, which would make it easier for farm workers to join unions.
The bill, recently passed by the Legislature, is headed to the desk of Gov. Jerry Brown — a former Oakland mayor — for his signature.
The resolution is on the consent agenda for the City Council meeting that begins at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.
At 5 p.m., Oakland Vice Mayor Ignacio De La Fuente and other SB 104 advocates will hold a press conference in front of City Hall, to explain why they back the measure. There will also be testimonies from farm workers.
“Farm workers are among the most exploited workers in the country. Anything we can do for them will be for the benefit of all of us,” De La Fuente said on Friday, June 3, 2011.
Since 1975, polling place elections on union representation have been held in the fields – where many growers coerce workers into voting against unions.
SB 104 would continue the existing process while giving workers the option to fill out state-issued ballots in the privacy of their homes – away from the stern gaze of farmers who fight the United Farm Workers.
The bill, introduced by state Senator Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) DOES NOT end the secret-ballot process; it simply gives farm laborers a new option to make their voices heard.
The resolution supporting SB 104 was placed on the City Council’s agenda at the request of De La Fuente, a labor relations veteran who was first elected to the council in 1992. He is currently an international vice president for the Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics, and Allied Workers International Union, AFL-CIO.
He believes employers have used unfair tactics since 1975, when farm workers gained the right to choose collective bargaining through secret ballots under California’s Agricultural Labor Relations Act.
“ All of us know that employers have used and manipulated the system” De La Fuente said. “SB 104 allows the process to move fairly and expeditiously.”
De La Fuente believes the resolution will pass unanimously. He also believes Governor Brown will sign SB 104 into law.
WHAT: Oakland City Council votes on resolution in support of SB 104, which would make it easier for farm workers to join unions.
WHEN: A 5:30 p.m., June 7, 2011, preceeded at 5 p.m. by press conference by SB 104 supporters.
WHERE: City Council meeting at City Hall, 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Oakland. Press conference will be on front steps of City Hall.
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