The New York State Assembly has approved the Farmworkers Omnibus Labor Standards Bill, or "The Farm Death Bill," and its future is now in the hands of our State Senate. The bill will require farmers to pay time-and-a-half for over time, allow farm workers to join labor unions, require a day off during harvest season, will require farmers to pay into the unemployment system, among other provisions.
This bill will force many New York farms out of business, and it is estimated that it will cost the farm families of New York more than $200 million per year. The bill will be devastating to both farmers and farm workers and the overall Upstate economy.
I agree with State Senator Cathy Young, who says: "If these bills go through, it will cause a nuclear explosion that destroys our state's top industry. Thousands of farms will go under, and countless jobs at farms, processing plants, and farm supply businesses will be lost...."
With this in mind, I am urging you to sign this online petition, or a printed copy, that I will collect and send to Gov. Paterson and our Senate leaders in late August. We will tell Albany and our State Senators to vote down this "Farm Death Bill", and let Gov. David Paterson know that if passed, we demand that he veto it.
