So the subcommittee should have invited UFW President Arturo Rodriguez, not Colbert. Maybe someone could ask him why he thinks real farm wages have not risen in 25 years? Could it be....the fact that there is an unlimited supply of illegal labor exerting downward pressure on their wages?
It’s an in your face attempt to get AMNESTY passed!
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FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — The United Farm Workers union has launched a new campaign meant to change people’s minds about the role migrants play in our nation’s economy. This new effort is about to get national attention but that didn’t keep UFW’s President Arturo Rodriguez from speaking in Fresno County.
Summer school students at Ben Benavidez Elementary school enjoyed today’s visit from Rodriguez. He’ll have a bigger audience when he appears on the popular political comedy show the Colbert report later this week. He will be talking about the UFW’s “Take Our Jobs” campaign.
Arturo Rodriguez has a plan, “We’re offering to anybody in America to come and try to work as a farm worker.” Stephen Colbert is expected to take him up on the offer.
For Sanger farmer Manuel Cunha heads the Nisei Farmers’ League and says today’s debate over legal vs. illegal immigration is a repeat of California circa late 1990’s. At that time there was a shortage of farm workers for many of the same reasons, “What the UFW has done is saying U.S. workers or those of you that are citizens or resident aliens and eligible to work: we have jobs.”
Tough, back breaking jobs that this farm labor contractor is having trouble filling this season. Leopaldo Garcia a farm labor contractor told us, “This is hard work, to harvest peaches grapes or whatever’s in the farm, it’s hard.” He has had no luck going to state unemployment offices for people willing to take the jobs he has to offer, “I make an order last week and nobody called yet, to to whoever wants to work and they don’t call yet.”
Finding a permanent legal solution to a now largely illegal immigrant work force is a common goal for the UFW and farmers these days. And many Central Valley farmers like Chuna are hanging their hopes on the current farm bill before congress to insure a means to harvest their crops.
Take Our Jobs
http://www.ufw.org/toj_play/TOJNEW_12_JAL.html
http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=7540462
http://www.ufw.org/images/b01.jpg
As president of the United Farm Workers, Arturo S. Rodriguez is continuing to build the union Cesar E. Chavez founded into a powerful voice for immigrant workers by increasing its membership and pushing historic legislation on immigration reform and worker rights.
Rodriguez is leading the UFW in bringing about meaningful change for farm workers by making it easier for them to organize and negotiate union contracts. He seeks to fundamentally transform American agriculture by creating jobs offering workers decent pay, comprehensive health coverage, retirement security, protections against toxic poisons, job security and guarantees against discrimination and sexual harassment. Under Rodriguez, the UFW is working to offer innovative alternative representation through benefits and services, and to extend innovative representation to workers temporarily brought to work in U.S. agriculture. His goal is also preserving America’s food supply through a strong and viable agricultural industry.
The veteran farm labor organizer was first exposed to Cesar Chavez through his parish priest in his hometown of San Antonio in 1966. He became active with the UFW’s grape boycott as a student at St. Mary’s University 1969. At the University of Michigan in 1971, where he earned an M.A. degree in social work, Rodriguez organized support for farm worker boycotts. He began serving full time with the UFW in 1973, when he first met Chavez, who became his mentor for 20 years. Rodriguez has more than 35 years experience organizing farm workers, negotiating UFW contracts and leading numerous farm worker boycott and political drives across North America.
http://www.ufw.org/_page.php?menu=about&inc=about_exe.html
