The Road to Farmworker Overtime Pay

Resources regarding farmworker overtime

Farmworkers have long been excluded from labor laws that prevent the abuse of workers– and the right to overtime is no exception. At a federal level, farmworkers are exempt from the requirement of overtime pay, and growers take advantage of this– forcing farmworkers to labor for long, difficult hours to make the most of the pay-by-piece structure, or otherwise. Columbia Legal Services, an organization that has partnered with Washington farmworkers many times to push for justice within the legal system, brought a case to the Washington State Supreme Court in 2020 arguing that farmworkers should be included in the right to overtime pay. In November, the Supreme Court ruled in favor. Below is more information, including a recorded discussion between the lawyers at Columbia Legal Services who argued the case and members of Evergreen’ Farmworker Justice Solidarity Collective. 

The Stand Article:

House passes overtime pay for farm workers

Zoom Interview with Columbia Legal Services: 

Workshop Interview with Columbia Legal Services:

Password: 5Z$6#Yf1

 

onLabor article:

Martinez-Cuevas: Reckoning with Labor Law’s Racist Roots

 Bellingham Herald article:

The New Deal didn’t apply to all workers. It’s time for Washington legislature to fix that.

More on Columbia Legal Services:

Columbia Legal Services Website