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Show Hlbor (yJiraioKis Because of its timely nature we've reprinted tions of it for consideration by Utah Farmers.) Bureau, Don Dressier spoke in Caldwell, Idaho about farm labor unions. NOT LIMITED TO CALIFORNIA The problem of farm labor unions is not limited to California, nor is it limited to fruit and vegetable crops. In California today we have union contracts covering over 35 commodities, including dairy cattle; poultry operations, lettuce; grapes, peaches and sugar beets. The most important thing farmers across thenationcan learn is that they are on the line. They will face a confrontation with unions. There is no farm so small or so remote tha he is exempt from this problem. The boycott is a vicious filing, and when it starts, it is a blanket operation. No grower is exempt The big and the small all suffer together. And that's why a small farmer cannot feel exempt from the problems of unions. True; a union may not go to the effort of calling on him personally tosignacontractwlthhim.Buthe may go to file union - almost literally on his hands and knees, if fiiat's the he can sell his crop and stay alive economically. only way You may not believe it can happen, but I have seen it It has happened. THE FIRST STEP for agriculture is to recognize it faces the problem of unionization. THE SEC OND STEPfor file nation's growers to to learn about the union, and the problem it presents to growers. Many people have an instant imaee of what unionization of our farms is like. Tlieypicturea group of workers getting together, considering a mutual problem, forming a group and picking a leader to represent them . This representative is the union leader,, and he goes to the farm employer with reasonable requests for modest wage increases and improved working conditions. All of this is derived by the workers. Then, some rich grower, who could give in to file reasonable requests of the workers, if he only would, refused to meet with the workers' representatives or to meet their demands. SELF APPOINTED UNIONS... TAKE IT UPON THEM SELVES TO REPRESENT WORKERS. That little scene is okay for the newspapers and the public, but it is not what happens on the farms of California. A union, supported by groups and individuals outside of the area, take it upon themselves to represent the workers. Not at the workers' request, and usually against the wishes of the workers. This union then writes or calls the farm employer and states that it represents his workers, and he had better negotiate. Almost in every case the union does this without talking to a single one of that farmer's employees. The union alleges that the workers have chosen it to represent them, and that's untrue. If the UFWOC, led by Cesar Chavez, was sincere in its statements that it is the chosen representative of the farm workers, why has it time and again backed away from free elections, conducted by either public agencies or impartial outsiders? As recently as three weeks ago, in the Imperial Valley of California, the UFWOC has spurned an offer of a free, secret ballot election to determine the feelings of the farm workers. self-appoint- ed COUNT PROCEDURE . . . THERE IS NO SECRECY ALLOWED THE WORKER. CARD Instead, the Chavez union leaders say they will accept a card count procedure. This is a method whereby the union leaders say they will accept a card count procedure. This is a method whereby the union leaders go to each worker, and tell him to sign a card if he wants the union to represent him and he wants to join the union. There is no privacy or secrecy allowed the worker. If he refuses to sign, the union leaders know who he is, can harass him and repeatedly have done so. -- AD VIC E ADVIC E TOG ROWER. . . ."SEEK COMPETENT In our experience, the best thing a grower can do, when confronted with union pressure, is to seek competent advice. The worst thing he can do, is to enter into negotiations with the union representative on his own, without discussing the matter with others and without getting help. A refusal to meet with the union and a referral to experienced help can buy time for a grower, can allow him to accurately assess his position, his legal rights, and his practical alternatives. I want to stress this point particularly, since many growers have panicked when facing union pickets, or a union telegram demands a meeting to negotiate a union contract. Every single grower who has taken his time, talked with others, and thoroughly evaluated his choices, has come out better than growers who have been afraid, and given in to the unions demands at once. This is without exception. EFFORTS, .... APART OF UNION ORGANIZING should mention, at this point that violence has unfortunately been a part of union organizing efforts. Violence has occurred when growers tried to escort their workers across union picket lines. The workers have been willing to bo to work, but are subject to threates and abuse when they pass union demonstrators. The local law enforcement officials are important in these situation, some growers have understandably been concerned and become very angry when faced with these situation. It is very Important for growers to remain calm, however, because any violent acts on their part are well publicized and only harm the farmers position. Violence on the part growers gains public support for the workers, and gets lots of attention. Lots of people, including some growers, dont see the many problems connected with negotiating The Farm? ro (Editor's Note: Legislative Counsel, California Farm VIOLENCE February 1971 UTAH FARM BUREAU Page 6 . por- with union leaders, and even with signing a union contract. If all the union demanded were increased wages and improved conditions on the job, things perhaps wouldnt be too bad. But the unions deihands go substantially further than that. UNION DEMANDS . . EVERY SINGLE EMPLOYEE UNION SHOP. . UNION HIRING HALL . . . I am sure that you have heard of some of the terms and conditions that the Chavez union Imposes upon growers who are forced to sign a union contract. But I would llks to emphasize some of the points. First, the UFWOC has demanded, and received, the right to represent all of the employees of a farmer, both full time and part time, both day labor and skilled. The union is not after just the hand labor inthe field or orchard, but after every single employee. The union demands a union shop. The individual workers have no chance to refuse the benefits of union membership. Either they join or they move on. Not only must they join, but their wages are subject to a check off for dues and special assessments. To put teeth in the union shop provisions of the contract, the union prohibits anyone who is not a union member from working on the farm operation. A number of California growers signed an agreement that prohibited even themselves from working on their own farm, believe it or not. The more recent union contracts have allowed farmers to work on their own place, and have also exempt the immediate family of the grower from union membership if they work on the farm. A farmers ability to hire his own workers is severely restricted under the union contract. The grower must call the union hiring hall if he wants workers. He cannot pick from men that ask him for a job. Instead he calls up the union office, tells them how many workers he will need for a job, and hopes they show up. An interesting side note on the hiring hall is that a grower must take whomever the union sends out to him. If he doesnt like a worker, he cannot refuse to hire the man. He can later fire the guy if he doesnt work though. The farm workers oppose the UFWOC. In fact, many farm workers fight the union harder than the growers do. One of the reasons for this opposition by farm workers is that they resent the union shop They dont like being made to join a provisions. group they oppose, and being made to pay dues to the union, just to get a job. They don't have any say so in the matter. They didnt get to select the union to represent them. They dont have any control over the union or its leaders. They are simply property the union acquired by signing a contract with the farmers. FARM WORKERS . . . INDEPENDENT FOR WHOM THEY CHOOSE . . WORK Farm workers are almost as Independent as the growers they work for. These men enjoy their freedom. They like to work for whom they choose. In the union hiring hall they have to go where they are sent. An interesting point in the hiring hall is that they give preference in the allocation of jobs to union people who have participated in strike activity or boycott work. These may well be, and often are, the less skilled workers but they get preference in job re- ferrals. Another problem with the union hiring hall is that after a worker is sent to a job, and completes it, he must go back to the hiring hall for his next job. When he goes back he is at the bottom of the referral list and must wait his turn for the next job. GROWERS FORCED TO MECHANIZE With the advent of unions in agriculture many oband they servers feel that labor costs will increase, have, forcing growers to mechanization as fast as One thing is clear for growers facing the possible. Chavez union, they had best mechanize before they sign a union contract. The union agreement almost always contains a clause which states: The number of workers requested by the grower shall be reasonably related to the amount of work to be perfomred in ratios This related to Companys previous practices. use and even if that you mecahnize, means, basically, to as used as half you use, you still many workers must hire the same number or workers. One of the vineyards of California had an experience of this kind this past fall, when they brought in a mechanical grape picker. I . UNION MEDICAL PLAN COSTS 10 CENTS PER HOUR AND BENEFITS OF 2 CENTS PER HOUR must menAny discussion of the UFWOC contract medical workers Farm tion the Robert F. Kennedy to farmers pay to contract requires plan. The union hour worked. for an hour every the Chavez union, 10? The money goes to a fund administered by the officials of the Union, not by a regulated Insurance company. The potential for abuse, in the handling of these funds concerns many people. At the latest sched-u- ls of benefits paid under the plan for medical costs, the economic value of the benefits was approximately 2? per hour. In other words the Union is paying out about 15 of the money taken in under the plan. UNION "ACCESS TO THE FINANCIAL OF AGROWEE" RECORDS An item of the contract which distresses a number of growers is the provision which gives the UFWOC access to the financial records of a grower, which relate to production or employee compensation. This information, in union hands, can be used to extract maximum wages and economic benefits from a grower. The union, on the other hand, is not willing to open its books to growers. The union also involves itself deeply in the use of agricultural chemicals, flatly banning the use of some, such as DDT and 24D, and requiring it be consulted when others are used. UNION CONTRACT FOLLOWS THE LAND REGARDLESS OF FUTURE OWNER OR LEASE last concern of growers who have had to sign the union contract is the successors clause. Basically this clause provides that once a grower signs a union contract he can not get out of it regardless. The union contract follows the farm operation no matter whether it is sold, leased, or goes into bankruptcy. The Chavez union has Imposed harsh terms on California growers. Terms Increase labor costs and substantially lmpare the farmers freedom to manage Ids farm. Considering this, why have growers signed UFWOC contracts? Not. because their workers demanded it. A major grower, now operating under a union contract, put it this way. f,We dont have a labor problem, we have a marketing problem. While the union activities were confined to and so on, our farmers had little picketing, to crews trouble getting work, and harvest their crops. on their heels was the inthem What really knocked once to it was picked, packed sell their crop ability A rm sign-wavi- ng and shipped. I think the point is very well illustrated by a statement of William Tlncher, president of Purex Corporation, when he explained why Freshplct Foods, a Purex subsidiary, signed a union agreement The UFWOC puts it propaganda with the UFWOC. out to all the left wing organizations in the country, Inflaming them. Then they come to the grocery stores and the drug stores, accompanied by young ministers, young rabbis, and young priests, : and demand that the grocer and the drug store stop carrying the products of the company that is Involved. The Nations grocers and druggists are sympathetic to us but they told us, you have got to solve this problem. We cant have all these hippies accompanied by religious leaders circling our store, brandishing their signs, shouting their threats of intimidation. You have got to get it settled or we drop you. BOYCOTT . . . FORCED FARMERS INTO CONTRACT It is this power of the boycott which has forced into union contracts. And it is the power of the can bring a union confrontation to every which boycott in commodity agriculture. The union can boycott potatoes just as easily as it can boycott lettuce or grapes. It can boycott milk and lamb along with carrots and farmers asparagus. For this reason all of agriculture has a stake in the lettuce boycott. To date pressures have been mounting in a number of US markets, but non UFWOC label lettuce has been moving in the market place. Growers need to organize for local disturbances. We have found it is a lot easier to plan and prepare for trouble before it hits, than to try to make rational decisions under fire. After all, when labor trouble hit, they usually come when you are busiest, inthe middle of harvest or other crucial farm operation. Its then that you are most vulnerable to pressure, and the union organizers know it. NEED CHANGE OF LAWS But perhaps the most important thing that can be done is to try to shift the balance of power away from unions. To do this we need a change in our laws. Weve got to have national farm labor legislation. We must protect by law right of a farm worker to choose for himself whether he wants a union to represent him. And this can only be done by a change of law. Weve got to control the boycott of agricultural products. Its a vicious weapon. It injures too many innocent people, who are not directly involved in the management-unio- n dispute. In industrial employment the boycott is limited by law, and agriculture must have the same protection. Agriculture, unlike industrial employment, has a perishable commodity. A car which is not built today can be built tomorrow. But - a tomato, ripe in the field, cannot If its not picked when its ready, the entire wait. cost of production is lost. For this reason crucial periods of agricultural production must be protected from work stoppage. That protection may take the form of a no strike at harvest provision. Or the answer may be a cooling off period, mandatory on both sides of the dispute. Whatever is done, the perishable nature of agriculture must be accounted for. State laws in these areas are. needed, until federal laws are passed. And state laws which help farmers will hasten the passage of federal laws. There are those who say - whats the use of all the bother? All of agriculture is going to unionize anyway. I dont agree. In the entire United States work force, only about one fifth of the workers belong to any union. At the worst, with laws to protect and guide us, I cant see any larger part of agriculture we ought to remember becoming organized. And that farm workers cherish their freedom just as . growers do. |