On September 5th, José Arturo González Mendoza tragically died while working on a farm within the North Carolina Growers Association (NCGA). Mendoza was 30 years old and left behind a wife and two children in Guanajuato, Mexico. We are devastated by this loss of life and are waiting for the results of the Department of …
“We are responsible from this moment forward, we are the voice of the union!” This past weekend, we met in Mexico City where over 15 H2A workers and staff came together to form our 2023 Union Advisory Committee. The committee’s role is to advise the union leadership on what is happening on the ground, to …
Reflections of FLOC President and Founder Baldemar Velasquez on Black History Month and the importance of Black Brown Unity for social change.
On September 10th, Baldemar Velasquez was re-elected as President of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee at the 14th Constitutional Convention.
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In a historic win for farmworkers and organized labor, FLOC and its allies overturned part of North Carolina’s Farm Act earlier this month. A federal court struck down part of the state law that would have stripped farmworkers and their union of their rights to bargain for voluntary union recognition in settling legal claims. This …
Read more “FEDERAL COURT RULING A MAJOR VICTORY FOR FLOC AND FARMWORKER RIGHTS”
We would like to tell you the story of Jessica Molina. Jessica is the youngest daughter to founding FLOC members Gregorio and Margarita, Jessica grew up in an environment inspired by leadership and activism. As witness to her parent’s participation in numerous marches and boycotts, she would soon follow in their footsteps, advocating for underrepresented …
Read more “Veteran Farm Worker Family to Represent FLOC at White House Event”
O.J. SMITH FARMS, KENT SMITH FARMS, THE BASS FARMS, GREENLEAF NURSERY CO., THE BAILEY BROTHERS FARM Dear Sisters and Brothers, Over the last several weeks, delegations of farm workers and community supporters delivered written notices to employers in support of FLOC members calling for an end to abuses and corruption in their workplace. They …
Read more “Sign Our Petition! Ask these growers to: SUPPORT HUMAN RIGHTS ON THEIR FARMS!”
Where in the world is FLOC and what are we doing? A few snap shots of a recent week – this is not an exhaustive list but is a great sample of one of our weeks. 1. Our VP Justin Flores was in Berlin Germany meeting with other union leaders and members from all over …
On World Children’s Day we are calling attention to the thousands and thousands of children who work in agriculture, often in hazardous and dangerous conditions. In the United States, more children die working in agriculture than in any other industry. A report by Human Rights Watch sheds light on the use of child labor in …
For years, the Farm Labor Organizing Committee has raised the alarm on the extreme vulnerabilities perpetuated within the H2-A system, including the widespread corruption within the recruitment system, the power imbalance created by tying workers’ immigration status to a single employer, and the rise of unscrupulous farm labor contractors, who are perpetuators of the most …
On Sunday, October 1st in Wilson, North Carolina an unexpected alliance developed between a large group of migrant farmworkers and numerous North Carolina farm groups. Through a two-hour discussion, the joint goal emerged of keeping labor intensive, small family farms operating in the United States to maintain and expand farmworker jobs currently protected under a collective bargaining agreement.
In the past month, two farmworkers have died due to heat related illnesses while working in the fields in the United States. Efraín, a young 29-year-old passed away in South Florida after experiencing signs of heat illness. After trying to cool off, he got up to go back to work, but then was found on the ground unresponsive. Dario, who was only 26 years old, passed away after working in over 90-degree heat in Yuma, Arizona, during a week with record-breaking temperatures rising over 100 degrees days in a row. The deaths of these two young men are incomprehensible because they were preventable. The
FLOC will work with the federal Office of Labor-Management Standards to set a historical precedent on how the federal government can govern migrant and foreign workers in union elections.
FLOC President Baldemar Velasquez and Secretary Treasurer Christiana Wagner attended the 28th Congress of the International Union of Food, Agriculture, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco, and Allied Workers’ Association (IUF) in Geneva, Switzerland. The IUF is an international federation of trade unions across the globe that we have been affiliated with for over a decade now. …
Read more “FLOC Leaders go to Geneva, Cultivate Solidarity and Meet with Big Tobacco!”
Three Virginia FLOC members are currently being sued for defamation in retaliation for supporting and actively participating in union activities. These members are single mothers, sole providers for their families, and immigrants of varying statuses. FLOC remains steadfast in supporting these women and we are asking our allies to do the same.
On April 19th, FLOC President Baldemar Velasquez and staff attended British American Tobacco’s Annual General Meeting to share with the executive board and shareholders the human rights abuses occurring in their supply chain. President Velasquez asked BAT Chairman Luc Jobin during the meeting,
“How and when will BAT do a serious effort to engage and address the serious inequities in the workforce that comes to harvest and cultivate the tobacco in its supply chain?”
FLOC Continues Struggle with British American Tobacco and Subsidiary Reynolds American Tobacco at Annual General Meeting in London PRESS RELEASE London, England- On Wednesday, April 19th FLOC President Baldemar Velasquez will be appearing at the British American Tobacco’s (BAT) Annual General Meeting. President Velasquez will communicate directly with shareholders concerning the ongoing inequities and abuses …