The Fruit Growers News - October 2002


Citing unfairness and the potential to eliminate farm worker jobs and family farms, the California Farm Bureau Federation (CFBF) has urged Governor Davis to veto Senate Bill 1736, which would impose binding arbitration on farmers. In its letter the federation said the bill “turns the collective bargaining process on its head” and unfairly gives unions power to force contracts on family farmers. “Through the legislative process, we argued for fairness and reasonableness and to uphold the framework of the Agricultural Labor Relations Act itself,” said CFBF President Bill Pauli. “This bill is anything but fair and imposes unique requirements that are unparalleled in the private sector. It is a job killer because it will force farmers out of business.” The bill proposes to add to the state labor act a process of meditation and binding arbitration on agricultural employers in instances where collective bargaining does not result in a contract. Binding arbitration is a remedy that has been limited to public employees, such as fire fighters and police officers, who are barred by state law from striking during labor negotiations, according to the CFBF. “If approved, this legislation would apply even in cases where farmers make a good-faith effort to create a contract with union negotiators,” said Pauli.
“It is not out of the realm of possibility that some family farmers, already squeezed by high production costs and poor prices, would be forced out of business by such an unfair process.”