The New York Times has an editorial this morning about the last minute regulations changes that the Bush Administration's Department of Labor is trying to push through before the next administration comes in.  Although they're referring to the DOL proposal to undermine safety rules relating to toxins in the work place, it's the same idea that's behind their proposed changes to the H-2A agricultural guestworker program: reduce policies to protect workers.

Our friends at California Rural Legal Assistance got an Op-Ed published in the LA Times Saturday on the preventable tragedies of heat stress "Despite, (or perhaps because of the weakness of), the heat illness prevention regulation, farmworkers continue to die from heat [related] illnesses."  These deaths (and illnesses) are 100% preventable so yay for them for helping to keep this issue in the spotlight this summer.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has published a position paper on the candidates' positions on creating a path to citizenship

The Naples Daily News is reporting the some growers are worried that the EPA's new rules will increase the cost of doing business (not true, the costs have always been there, it's just that the growers have been externalizing those costs onto the environment and workers.  For more info see The True Cost of Pesticides).

Agribusiness paper article on the Washington state guestworker program proposal.

Dallas is considering renaming a street in honor of labor leader Cesar Chavez.  The proposal is generating lots of controversy.

As always feel free to leave links to interesting farmworker related news items in the comments section below!