Last week, twelve of the largest tomato growers in the Immokalee region in Florida came together to sign the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) growers’ Code of Conduct agreement. As part of the organization’s Campaign for Fair Food, the Code of Conduct requires large tomato companies to provide safe and secure working conditions for their produce pickers, some of the most vulnerable workers in the United States.
(Photo credit: CIW & Scott Robertson)
The twelve businesses that signed on last week represent 90 percent of tomato growers in the Immokalee region’s USD $600 million tomato growing industry. By signing, these organizations agreed to, among other things, increase farm worker wages by a penny-per-pound and collaborate with CIW to develop a health and safety program for tomato pickers.
While just a single penny more per pound may not seem like anything to celebrate, for most farm workers in the Immokalee region, that single penny per pound will provide a salary increase of USD $20 per day— raising the average wage from USD $50 to USD $70 per day.
And CIW, perhaps the strongest and most well-known advocate for these workers, is not planning to stop with this victory. Their plans for the new year include organizing at the national level to continue growing its partnerships with large food distributors and working closely with participating growers in Florida to ensure that current agreements continue to efficiently and effectively protect workers.
To read more about CIW and its fight to improve working conditions for tomato pickers in the Immokalee region, see: Food with (Not so Much) Integrity, Making Sure the Food Industry Works for its Employees and Modern Slavery Museum: Coming to a Street or City Near You.
