National Farm Worker Ministry
438 N. Skinker Blvd. ~ St. Louis, MO 63130 ~ 314-726-6470 ~ fax 314-726-6427 ~ NFWM@aol.com ~ www.nfwm.org
2 p.m. Friday
Leaders of national religious group gather in Ventura to back Picksweet mushroom workers
Religious leaders from across the United States will gather in Ventura on Friday to support Pictsweet Mushroom Farms employees battling for a United Farm Workers contract and to back a bill making it easier for farm workers to win union agreements.
The board of the National Farm Worker Ministry (NFWM) begins its semi-annual meeting with a demonstration at Pictsweet’s plant in Ventura to promote the boycott of Pictsweet mushrooms sponsored by its workers. NFWM members represent national religious denominations, state councils of churches, religious orders and local support groups from throughout the nation.
They will also urge support for SB 1736, by state Senate President pro Tem John Burton (D-San Francisco), which would allow binding arbitration to encourage the agreements on union contracts. Presently, companies such as Pictsweet have used delaying tactics to drag out bargaining for years, sometimes decades, according to Virginia Nesmith, NFWM executive director.
"We hope our presence in Ventura sends a strong message to Pictsweet management and Gov. Gray Davis that this issue has touched the hearts of concerned consumers and religious leaders around the country. It needs to be resolved with a contract for PictSweet workers and the enactment of SB 1736," Nesmith said. Until a fair contract is negotiated at PictSweet’s Ventura plant, NFWM board members will promote the boycott in their congregations, publications and national meetings, reaching hundreds of thousands of constituents.
The National Farm Worker Ministry was formed in 1971 to organize support for farm workers in the nation’s religious community.
Who: Religious leaders from New York, Maine, Illinois, Massachusetts, Missouri, Ohio, Washington, D.C., Florida, North Carolina, Oregon and California plus local clergy and Pictsweet workers.
What: Demonstration and prayers backing UFW members at Pictsweet and passage of SB 1736.
When: 2 p.m., Friday, May 31, 2002.
Where: In front of Pictsweet plant, 4440 Olivas Park Dr., Ventura.