OLYMPIA, Wash. – Bilingual chants of “We don’t want overtime, overtime will not be paid, we want more hours!” echoed around the capitol campus in Olympia on Thursday, Jan. 25, as more than 300 farmworkers gathered to speak out against the state’s new overtime law for farm work that is harming them.
The law went into full effect this year after a phase-in and has resulted in a significant loss of take-home pay and reduced hours for farmworkers in Washington, findings echoed by a recent study from Cal Berkeley that analyzed the impacts of California’s similar change in agricultural wage laws. Coupled with the rapid increase in the cost of living, overtime restrictions are deeply harming workers’ economic situations in Washington state as the study notes.
Latino-owned farms and start-ups are among the hardest hit by the new overtime law as they adapt to keep farms open and workers employed.
“Both workers and farmers are aligned on this issue. It’s unfortunate that what may have been a well-intentioned bill is having such painful consequences. Our hope today is that these workers can be heard and a fix to this law can be made.” said Maia Espinoza, Executive Director of the Center for Latino Leadership during a press interview on Thursday.
Over 1,000 farmworkers gathered at events across eastern Washington this past fall to speak out on this issue, saying they will continue to gather and voice their frustration until leaders in Olympia make changes to allow them to make more money.
One possible solution is a bipartisan proposal supported by workers is Senate Bill 5476, sponsored by state Sen. Curtis King (R-Yakima) who addressed the crowd. His bill would allow more flexibility and empower workers to choose periods during harvest to work more hours before meeting a higher overtime threshold.
“It was great to see hundreds of farm workers at the rally in Olympia. Their presence at the Capitol made it clear that the state’s current agricultural overtime laws have problems that need to be fixed by the Legislature this year, especially on the issue of seasonality,” said King.
The legislation is scheduled for a public hearing on Jan. 30, just one day before the first deadline for bills to continue in the legislative process.
State Sen. Nikki Torres (R-Pasco), a cosponsor of the bill, also spoke at the rally and said of the developments, “It is vital that lawmakers hear directly from workers. We can tell our colleagues how bad a problem is; we can make speeches and introduce bills, but it makes a tremendous difference when they can hear democracy in action and see so many people speaking out and demanding a solution.”
Thursday’s event at the state Capitol’s north steps featured several speakers sharing how the new law affects them, providing information about the evolving issue and allowing workers to have their perspectives heard. Additional speakers included:
- Maria Rodriguez, Vizionz Economic Development Center
- State Senator Ron Muzzall (R), Oak Harbor
- State Senator Judy Warnick (R), Moses Lake
- State Senator Keith Wagoner (R), Sedro-Woolley
Center for Latino Leadership, a 503(c)3 non-profit promoting bipartisan conversation and collaboration on the issues that truly matter to Washington state’s Latino communities. Visit centerforlatinoleaders.org
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