Operation Beat The Heat to provide 'basic fundamental rights' to farmworkers
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a new effort at the federal level to help keep farmworkers safe as heat waves continue around the country. The new campaign is called Operation Beat the Heat.
It's meant to bring awareness to heat safety violations and to educate farmworkers of their rights and industry employers of their responsibilities.
"It's a basic fundamental right that, provides safe adequate working conditions to the workers, and they're minimum standards, they are easy to comply with," said Eden Ramirez, the Southwest regional director, with the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division.
Ramirez oversees the Colorado region.
Forté Fruits Inc. has been selling palisade peaches since 1972, so dealing with extreme heat is nothing new for their farmworkers. Danijel Dukic helps run business operations and said the blistering heat does pose challenges for workers, which is why they start shifts earlier in the day and ensure workers are taking frequent breaks.
"We have the same guys coming for a few years back, so they kind of know what to do, and how to do it, this isn't the first time it's getting this hot," Dukic said. "By noon they're about done, so that's the safest."
That farmworker safety amid soaring temperatures is critical, which is why Ramirez said employers need to be cognizant of the minimum worker standards, like providing farmworker with cold water that's readily available. If employers aren't providing that for workers, "they might see themselves with civil money penalties that might be imposed on them."
Since 2019, the division has given employers with more than $20.1 million in civil money penalties for labor violations. The department has also conducted more than 2,659 agricultural industry investigations and cited more than 100 employers for violations related to heat-related illnesses or injuries.
For Forté Fruits, that's not a worry because worker safety is a priority. Dukic just hopes mother nature eases up.
"We just have to do it, you know? Hot weather, it's coming, but hopefully it will slow down after that," he said.