Northwest WA Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO

is working to inform our union brothers and sisters and our communities about guest worker H2A farmworker issues and take action to allow guest workers farmworkers the right to assemble and have the freedom to have a voice at their workplace without retaliation. This work was started after Honesto Silva died due to not receiving needed medical care for diabetes while working at Sarbandan Farm owned by Munger Farms. Conditions on this farm were unacceptable and Sarbandan Farm was fined by LNI for not providing the workers meals and rest breaks. Workers on Sarbandan Farm picked blueberries under smokey and hot conditions without adequate water.

NWWCLC, Community to Community, Jobs with Justice, SEIU 1199NW and Skagit Work Group are putting on forums to provide education. Our next forum is on February 15th

"No Way to Treat a Guest: A Community Forum on H2A Guest Workers"

with Adrienne DerVartanian Director of Immigration and Labor Rights at Farmworker Justice from DC. Future forum on April 3rd with David Bacon author and photographer on farmworker issues and Jeff Johnson President of WSLC, AFL-CIO will speak on Guest Worker/H2A issues.