John —

The CIW's farmworker educators start every on-farm session with this declaration: The "Know Your Rights and Responsibilities" booklet you received on your first day of work will be nothing but words on paper without the active participation of every worker on this crew.

When a sexual harassment case surfaces, when a paycheck falls short, when the heat becomes overwhelming but there is no mandatory shade structure in sight – the Fair Food Program ensures that workers, as the frontline monitors of their own rights, can report violations without fear of retaliation. That is why real and sustained worker participation is not only a moral imperative of the Fair Food Program, but a practical one as well, and the true secret of the program's unparalleled success.

From the creation of the Code of Conduct ten years ago to a worker complaint resolved just this morning, the Fair Food Program is reversing a culture of farmworker abuse by ensuring workers' voices are heard and respected – every single day. Becoming a Fair Food Sustainer will help us continue to build a world in which all farmworkers are free to speak up in their place of work, without fear of retaliation or losing their livelihood, in order to protect their basic human rights. Sign up to be one of today's 10 new Fair Food Sustainers!

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In their exchanges with Fair Food Standards Council auditors and investigators on participating farms, the stories workers tell only underscore the urgent need to bring the Fair Food Program to every corner of the country.

Here are just a few of those workers' comments, directly from Fair Food Program field notes, gathered over the past season:

One worker reported during an audit, "The company gives us disinfectants, towels to clean, and everything we need! We are not missing anything." Even beyond health and safety, he added: "Before the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, there were slaves ... They said ‘after a while you’ll get paid’... But not anymore, thanks to the Coalition."
One farmworker told auditors that she feels "very comfortable" working with her group, and that all supervisors are "very respectful." She feels like she is "at home" working at the company. She explained further that she had been sexually harassed when she working in other industries like painting and cleaning, but that at Fair Food Program Participating Growers, she feels sure –"me siento segura" – that those things do not happen.
Two workers, who spoke both Spanish and Creole, said the Fair Food Program was the first time in their experience that workers had received information in Creole. "We usually try to translate what we hear for our coworkers," one of them explained. "I speak both Spanish and Creole, but when I saw the Coalition was offering to present in my native language, I thought 'wow,' and came over here to listen."

We've reached the halfway mark of our summer Sustainer Drive to welcome 10 new sustainers per day over 10 days. Already, 55 people have stepped forward to give monthly. Help us keep the momentum going by signing up here to become a Sustainer today!