The Coalition of Immokalee Workers' Fair Food Program has doubled in size in the last few weeks, following a $15 million grant from the United States Department of Agriculture.
"What that means in more concrete terms is that USDA, it's incentivizing growers," said Gerardo Reyes-Chavez, a former farmworker and member of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers.
The Fair Food Program, an agricultural civil rights group that was created in Immokalee in 2011, advocates for:
- Heat protections
- Fair wages
- Water and meal breaks
- Bathrooms on site
- Working hours
"They didn't pay us for the work we did. So being in a situation like that as a worker, leaves you with very little choice sometimes, you get to a point when you realize that the only choice really is to fight, to fight for something that is better ... We never had the power before the program to be able to sit at the table with the growers, to be able to create a solution that mitigates risks and guarantees our dignity is not crushed in any part of the process of work," added Reyes-Chavez, reflecting on his time as a tomato picker.
Since the Federal government's announcement, the Fair Food Program tells NBC2 that their program has been adopted by farms in more than 20 states, and multiple countries throughout the globe. Multiple farms locally have also joined Fair Food.
"There are 27 new growers that have joined the program because of that, and there are 13 new states. When the program started, it was just Florida. We will be effectively operating with the program in nearly half the country. A lot more work needs to be done. A lot more growers need to take a look in this direction and try to do the right thing," said Reyes-Chavez.
Due to the massive growth and interest, representatives from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Fair Food Program have been touring farms nationwide, to advocate for equal protections for workers in all 50 states. Federal funding is available for any and all groups that decide to follow the Program's guidelines.
"Now things have changed. There's more help now for the farm workers, which is a good thing, because without the farm workers, things don't get done here ... It benefits everyone, not just Immokalee," said Danny Gonzalez, the owner of Lozano's Mexican Restaurant and the Chairman of the Immokalee Chamber of Commerce.