January 1996, Volume 2, Number 1
Rural America
Immigrants Transform Midwest Towns
A Wall Street Journal profile of Worthington, Minnesota recounted
the familiar story of how ConAgra recruited immigrant Asian and
Latino workers
Education and Rural Growth
According to Business Week, there is another renaissance in rural
America led by yuppies using high-tech gadgets to ply their trades in
urban areas
Migration Affects Rural California
The Commission on Immigration Reform held a hearing November 15,
1995 in Fresno on how immigration is affecting rural California, and
whether the
Migrants in Maine and Kentucky
The increased use of farm labor contractors is a major factor in
the increased use of Spanish-speaking workers in Maine's blueberry,
broccoli,
Black Farmers
There are about 19,000 Black farmers in the US, down about 95
percent from 380,000 in 1954. Texas and Mississippi have the most
Black farmers;
Farm Workers
Agricultural Guest Workers
On December 7 and 14, the House Immigration Subcommittee on
Immigration and Claims held hearings in Washington, DC on
agricultural guest workers.
Adjusting to Farm Labor Shortages
Much of the debate over whether a new guest worker program is
needed for agriculture is a debate over how the farm labor market
would adjust if the
UFW Activities
The Wall Street Journal published a generally optimistic
assessment of the "new" UFW on December 19, 1995--12 straight
election victories, most by
ALRB Activities
Michael Stoker was appointed to be the chair of the Agricultural
Labor Relations Board in June 1995, and Paul Richardson was appointed
General
Regulating the Farm Labor Market
On October 17, 1995, the US House of Representatives approved by a
voice vote HR 1715, a bill that reverses the US Supreme Court's March
1990 Adams
NAFTA and Florida/California
On December 6, 1995, Florida farmers dumped produce to publicize
what they allege are Mexican imports that are depressing US prices.
According to
Pesticides and Farm Workers
California Gov. Pete Wilson called a special session of the
Legislature on January 2, 1995 to consider legislation to allow the
continued use of a
Florida Farm Workers Protest
In November 1995, 300 workers associated with four farm worker
groups organized the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to protest a pay
cut, from $4.25
Changes in Federal MSFW Programs
There are 10 federal assistance programs that serve Migrant and
Seasonal Farm Workers and their children. Most are administered from
an office in
Immigration
Hispanic Unemployment
AFOP Washington Newsline, September 1995. Ray Quintanilla, "New US
Rules weeding out children of migrants," Chicago Tribune, July 28,
1995. Martin,
INS: Asylum, Naturalization, and Deportation
On January 4, 1996, the INS released its report card on asylum
reforms implemented one year earlier. The number of new asylum claims
filed fell
Other
Mexico: Farm Policy Changes
Procampo, the Rural Direct Support Program begun by the Mexican
government in 1994, offers subsidies to some of the 60 percent of
Mexican farms
Starbucks Sets Farm Worker Standards
Starbucks Coffee in October 1995 became the first-ever US company
to announce minimum standards for foreign farm workers who produce
its coffee.
Farm Workers on Plantations
Phillippe Egger of the ILO reports that there are one billion farm
workers employed on plantations in developing countries, and that
about 20
Brazilian Farm Workers
In June 1995, Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso
ordered his ordered his cabinet to make land reform a priority in
order to end rural
Resources
American Farmland Trust
American Farmland Trust. 1995. Future Urban Growth in California's
Central Valley. Davis.
This report notes that California, which had about