skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, April 26, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Louisiana teachers' union concerned about educators' future; Supreme Court hears arguments in Trump immunity case; court issues restraining order against fracking waste-storage facility; landmark NE agreement takes a proactive approach to CO2 pipeline risks.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Speaker Johnson accuses demonstrating students of getting support from Hamas. TikTok says it'll challenge the ban. And the Supreme Court dives into the gray area between abortion and pregnancy healthcare, and into former President Trump's broad immunity claims.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The urban-rural death divide is widening for working-age Americans, many home internet connections established for rural students during COVID have been broken, and a new federal rule aims to put the "public" back in public lands.

Farmworkers, Civil Rights Groups Sue State Over Law

play audio
Play

Thursday, November 16, 2017   

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The state of North Carolina is a defendant in a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday challenging a state law that prevents farmworkers from organizing to protect their rights on the job.

The case was filed by the ACLU of North Carolina and the Southern Poverty Law Center on behalf of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee. They argue that the North Carolina Farm Act, passed this summer, violates workers' First Amendment rights.

FLOC organizer Justin Flores said all residents should care about the rights of the people who harvest their food, especially at this time of year.

"As we approach Thanksgiving and even more so Christmas, many folks aren't aware that almost an entirely migrant workforce harvests Christmas trees, as well as sweet potatoes, squash, you name it - it's all produced by immigrant labor,” Flores said.

The Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that the government cannot impose special burdens on groups such as unions.

Flores said the law passed swiftly this summer, without time for public comment. It prevents workers from having union dues taken out of pay checks and prohibits farm owners from signing agreements with workers to improve working conditions on farms.

The law's primary sponsor was State Sen. Brent Jackson, who owns Jackson Farming Company and was recently sued for wage theft by Latino farmworkers.

Supporters of the legislation say it's meant to protect workers from being forced to join a union. Flores said that's not an accurate representation of why protecting farmworkers' rights to organize is important.

"The enforcement methods in agriculture are complaint-driven,” he explained. “So even with the best effort, agencies have trouble fully inspecting factories and other fixed-site workplaces."

There are more than 100,000 farmworkers in North Carolina, generating more than $12 billion annually for the state economy. The vast majority are Latino and work under H2A visas.

Reporting by North Carolina News Connection in association with Media in the Public Interest and funded in part by the Park Foundation.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
The United Nations experts also expressed concern over a Chemours application to expand PFAS production in North Carolina. (Adobe Stock)

play sound

United Nations experts are raising concerns about chemical giants DuPont and Chemours, saying they've violated human rights in North Carolina…


Social Issues

play sound

The long-delayed Farm Bill could benefit Virginia farmers by renewing funding for climate-smart investments, but it's been held up for months in …

Environment

play sound

Conservation groups say the Hawaiian Islands are on the leading edge of the fight to preserve endangered birds, since climate change and habitat loss …


Jane Kleeb is director and founder of Bold Alliance, an umbrella organization of Bold Nebraska, which was instrumental in stopping the Keystone Pipeline. Kleeb is also one of two 2023 Climate Breakthrough Awardees. (Bold Alliance)

Environment

play sound

CO2 pipelines are on the increase in the United States, and like all pipelines, they come with risks. Preparing for those risks is a major focus of …

Environment

play sound

April has been "Invasive Plant Pest and Disease Awareness Month," but the pests don't know that. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says it's the …

Legislation to curtail the union membership rights of about 50,000 public school educators in Lousiana has the backing of some business and national conservative groups. (wavebreak3/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Leaders of a teachers' union in Louisiana are voicing concerns about a package of bills they say would have the effect of dissolving labor unions in t…

Health and Wellness

play sound

The 2024 Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Public Conference kicks off Saturday, where industry experts and researchers will share the latest scientific …

Environment

play sound

Environmental groups say more should be done to protect people's health from what they call toxic, radioactive sludge. A court granted a temporary …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021