One of IOF’s key issues this season is wage theft, and one form of wage theft is the unfair implementation of the H2A “three-quarters guarantee”. When H2A farmworkers come to the U.S. for work, they face many limitations since their employer is also their landlord, visa-sponsor, and their only transportation. However, one right they do have is the “three-quarters (¾) guarantee.” Because unpredictable weather determines if and when workers can work, the H2A contract guarantees that the grower will give workers at least 75% of the working hours promised. The catch? The ¾ guarantee is calculated over an entire season, not week-to-week or month-to-month, leaving many workers stranded without food during periods of time with little to no work. While many workers arrive in early May for planting, the harvest doesn’t usually begin until a month and a half later, unless those employers cultivate short season crops like strawberries. Workers might work in planting for a week, complete any available side tasks if the grower has any, and then have no work for up to six weeks waiting for a harvest- without earning a dime to send back home- or to purchase food themselves. This is an extreme hardship on H2A workers. They are legally bound to their growers, so can’t leave to look for work on other farms, if things are slow on their farm. And assuming they work 14 hours a day at the height of the harvest for weeks in a row in the middle of the summer, they are unlikely to qualify for any relief under the three-quarters guarantee. Fortunately, local churches have responded to the need. Workers have been organizing themselves and coordinating with IOF coordinators to reach out to food banks and church pantries. Special thanks to Benson Baptist Church: they did a special appeal, collecting 23 baskets of food in one day, benefiting workers at four different camps. When they asked their members for financial support, the church collected $800! IOF will be distributing the groceries purchased with this donation in the coming days- we anticipate that over 40 workers will benefit. Thank you Benson Baptists! In the spirit of community and mutual aid, when IOF members receive grocery donations, they work out amongst themselves who has had work lately and who hasn’t, ensuring an equitable distribution of the food. |