Farmers in Washington State Are Suing the U.S. Department of Labour Because Their Wages Have Been Lowered

A group of farmworkers from Washington state is taking legal action against the U.S. The Department of Labour is being accused of allowing companies to hire workers from other countries at lower wages instead of hiring local workers.

The farmworkers in Skagit County are part of the Familias Unidas por la Justicia union. They are asking a federal judge to make the department change their pay so they can earn more money and improve their living conditions.

In 2022, the Department of Labour eliminated its prevailing wage system. This system established a fixed wage for farm workers, which was determined by the average wages reported by people working in the same field through surveys. Columbia Legal Services, a law firm in Seattle, requested the court to temporarily revert to using prevailing wage rules from 2022 on Friday. This is to ensure that the case can proceed.

Currently, the Department of Labour in Washington state sets the wage for temporary visa workers at $19.25. This is about $3 higher than the minimum wage in the state. An experienced worker from the U.S. can typically earn about $28 during the busiest harvest times. Edgar Franks, a member of Familias Unidas Por La Justicia, made this statement.

He said that it is easier for farmers to hire foreign workers instead of local farmworkers at lower wages.

“That’s a significant blow for individuals who have spent a considerable amount of time working on farms, specifically in apple picking,” Franks stated. “They are great and are excited to work picking crops during the busy season to make enough money.”

The farmworkers are saying that the rules on pay from the Department of Labour are old-fashioned and sometimes don’t align with what the law actually states. The department wants to increase the $19.25 wage to make it more competitive, among other changes.

“The Department of Labour is not doing a good job of making sure that local workers are paid enough,” said Andrea Schmitt, a lawyer for the farmworkers represented by Seattle’s Columbia Legal Services. “This causes pain for families who work on farms and makes them lose jobs that they would have otherwise accepted.”

“According to her, it is important to protect workers in the area from the negative impact of hiring workers from economically weak regions who may accept lower wages,” she said.