Legislator Profile: Congressman TJ Cox Representing the 21st District of California

May 8th, 2019

Congressman TJ Cox represents California’s 21st Congressional District. The District includes all of Kings County and portions of Fresno, Kern, and Tulare Counties. He ran unsuccessfully for the 19th District seat in 2006, but won during his second try for Congress in 2018. Rep. Cox was sworn into the 116th Congress on January 3, 2019.

What personal accomplishments are you most proud of?

My kids and my marriage. The last 26 years have been the most incredible adventure I could have imagined and brought us our four wonderful kids. I’m also extremely proud to serve in Congress’s most robust class of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, as well as part of the 13 percent of lawmakers who are immigrants or children of immigrants. This is the most diverse Congress in American history—and our race was the last one called in the 2018 election!

Tell us about your upbringing and how that plays a role in your decision to pursue politics as a career.

My upbringing had an incredible role in my decision to pursue politics. My dad came from China and my mom from the Philippines—a classic immigrant story. Growing up, they told me to work hard and take advantage of all the wonderful opportunities that America gives to all people, opportunities that it gave to us, and that’s exactly what I’m doing to this day. I am pursuing politics because my family has had the incredible privilege of experiencing America as the land of opportunity. That’s one of the reasons I ran for Congress: to pass on those same opportunities to my four kids. We have an obligation to cultivate the next generation of leaders.

Tell us the difference in approach you took in the 2006 election vs. 2018 election?

In both elections, it was clear that the American public was angry with the direction of the country. I’m very proud of the team that we built last year because of the outreach that we had and the number of volunteers and voters we were able to involve in that effort. It was an incredible experience.

What motivated you to start your two nut processing businesses?

We saw a need in the community, and I stepped in to help meet that need. The Central Valley is where most of the nuts consumed in the United States come from, and I was proud of the work that we did here to grow jobs right here in the Valley.

As an agriculture committee member, what are your top priorities?

As a member of the House Committee on Agriculture, the Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture and the Subcommittee on Biotechnology, Horticulture, and Research, some of my top priorities are ensuring that our producers have access to the foreign markets that they need to sell their products. Part of that is working to resolve these damaging trade wars that are taking a toll on the Central Valley. As the most agriculturally-productive district in the top agriculture state, access to clean water is imperative to our economy and critical to the health and well-being of our communities. I’m focused on shoring up our water infrastructure to meet those needs.

What is your key message to California agriculture during this legislative session?

I understand, firsthand, the importance of the agricultural industry as a driving force in California’s economy, operating two nut-processing businesses myself. I’m focused on searching for solutions to these unnecessary and damaging trade wars, and passing USMCA so that our farmers and ranchers have the stability they need to plan for the future.

I’m proud to have recently been named Vice Chair of Majority Leader Hoyer’s Rural Poverty Task Force so that I can raise to Congress the unique challenges faced by the Central Valley’s rural agriculture communities and work to develop aggressive solutions for us all. My Washington, DC and Bakersfield offices are always open, and I welcome our California farmers and ranchers to come in.

Tags: , ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, May / June 2019 Issue | No Comments »

“Game-Think” Transforming How Information is Consumed

May 8th, 2019

As you insert the coin in the arcade game, you ready your fingers to quickly and nimbly move around the maze. You swipe the joystick right, right, right, then up, up, up. Your goal? To swiftly maneuver your PAC-MAN around the screen, capturing as many small yellow dots as possible while avoiding the brightly colored ghosts.

Though the popularity of video arcade games have died down since their golden age back in the 1980s, gaming is still very alive today. We live in modern times where smart phones are no longer a luxury but rather a necessity. Consumers are using nontraditional sources like social media and apps to obtain any type of information or service. These platforms are designed in a way that use concepts from PAC-MAN-like arcade games—including swiping the joystick to earn points or continuously clicking buttons to advance to the next level—to make them easy and fun to use.

There are dating apps where you can swipe left or right to indicate your interest in a potential partner. We have news apps where you can quickly scroll through dozens of stories until you reach the one you would like to read. There are even apps where you can filter and click to get food delivered to your doorstep in a matter of minutes. We have grown into a “game-think” society that prefers to access content like they would a game—through clicks, swipes and scrolls.

So how do you utilize “game-think” to cut through the clutter to get your brand and message in front of consumers? Keep your content simple. Here are some key tips to help your brand stories get noticed and that are easy to implement right from the farm.

Know Your Audience

Understanding who you are targeting and what you want your message to be will shape what your content looks like. For instance, if you are trying to target mothers who primarily buy groceries for the household, they will likely want to know where their food comes from and what inputs were used to grow it. Your content needs to trigger their curiosity by filling the gap between what they know and what they want to know.

You can effectively present that information using the “read and click” model of games. An example would be quickly composing a short blog that explains how a certain commodity is grown and harvested, with clickable links to health benefits and photos of the team that helped bring that fruit or vegetable to their table.

Keep it Short and Simple

Engaging content doesn’t need to be a work of literary art. People have incredibly short attention spans online and often it’s more effective to have content that is short and concise. A great example is Jacobs Farm/Del Cabo, an organic family farm on California’s Central Coast, which uses the swipe feature of Instagram to succinctly share information about the products they grow and engage with their audience. In one recent post by @jacobsfarmsdelcabo, the firm posted three images, where users could swipe right to see the next photo: 1) farmworkers in a field of rosemary; 2) a close up shot of the rosemary being cut; and 3) the final product, banded with a the Jacob Farms label. Along with the images, the caption was short and simple: “Rosemary season is beginning to flourish along the Northern California Coast. Swipe right to see the journey of our Jacobs Farms Organic Rosemary from plant to package.”

Jacobs Farm/Del Cabo used simple yet compelling images to tell their story, rather than write it in a lengthy caption. They masterfully used the “game-think” of swiping to advance to the next image, while also providing value to the reader by giving them an inside look into how herbs are harvested.

Mix Up the Visuals

Two attributes that all games have are memorable sounds and bright colors. To stand out and get your message across to your target audience, using different types of multimedia is crucial. This can be in the form of an image, video, chart or infographic (image with text)—all of which can be created on your phone.

Since revamping Western Growers’ social media platforms—Facebook, Instagram and Twitter—three years ago, we have posted everything from long and short form videos to story links and vibrant images of our member farmers in the field. Mixing up the type of content has played a role in enticing more consumers to engage with our social media channels and therefore learn more about the agriculture industry and the family farmers who are feeding the world. As a result, Western Growers has grown its Facebook audience from 600 to more than 11,000 fans in just a few years.

Using these “game-think” essentials, your content will stand out and your brand will rise above the stiff competition for attention. For help ramping up your content, feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] or (949) 885-2256.

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, May / June 2019 Issue | No Comments »

What Employers Should Know About California’s New Data Privacy Law

May 8th, 2019

By Jennifer A. Jackson

Employers with operations in California should be aware of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), a new data privacy law that goes into effect January 1, 2020. Because the CCPA is framed in terms of protecting the rights of “consumers,” many employers may not realize that the act, as currently drafted, also regulates the handling of personal information about California-based employees. Employers subject to the CCPA should be addressing compliance obligations now, including analyzing the treatment of employee data and updating or introducing new data privacy and data security policies. Those who fail to comply may find themselves subject to civil penalties of $2,500 to $7,500 per violation, and/or defending class action lawsuits for statutory damages of $100 – $750 per employee per data breach incident.

Which Companies are Subject to the CCPA?

The CCPA applies to for-profit entities doing business in California that collect personal information about California residents, “determine the purposes and means of the processing” of that personal information, and

— have annual gross revenue greater than $25 million, OR

— buy, sell or share personal information of 50,000 consumers or devices, OR

— derive 50 percent of their annual revenue from sharing personal information.

Who is Protected by the CCPA?

While the CCPA is framed in terms of protecting “consumers,” the definition of “consumer” is broader than one might expect. “‘Consumer’ means a natural person who is a California resident …” Read literally, “consumer” includes not only an individual that consumes a product, such as a customer of a store, but also that store’s California-based employees, prospective customers and business contacts. As a practical matter, any California-based employee whose personal information is collected by a business subject to the CCPA is protected.

What Information is Covered by the CCPA?

“Personal information” is defined by the CCPA as “information that identifies, relates to, describes, is capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer or household.” The CCPA provides an extensive (but not exhaustive!) list of data types that may fall under the broad definition of “personal information.”

The following are examples of data governed by the CCPA that employers are most likely to collect about their employees:

1.   Real name

2.   Postal address

3.   Email address

4.   Social Security Number

5.   Driver’s license number

6.   Passport number

7.   Signature

8.   Physical characteristics or description

9.   Telephone number

10.  State identification card number

11.  Insurance policy number

12.  Education

13.  Educational information (as defined by 34 C.F.R. Part 99)

14.  Employment

15.  Employment history

16.  Bank account number

17.  Credit card number

18.  Characteristics of protected classification under California law

19.  Characteristics of protected classification under federal law

20.  Biometric information

21.  Internet or other electronic network activity

22.  Browsing history

23.  Search history

24.  Audio information

25.  Electronic information

26.  Visual information

27.  Profiles of an employee’s behavior

28.  Profiles of an employee’s attitudes

29.  Profiles of an employee’s intelligence

30.  Profiles of an employee’s abilities

31.  Profiles of an employee’s aptitudes

What are the Requirements of the CCPA?

The CCPA’s requirements can be grouped into three buckets – those relating to individual privacy rights; those relating to data security; and those relating to service providers. The following provides a high-level summary of the main issues.

Protecting Individual Privacy Rights

–   Notices to data subjects. A business must provide those employees about whom it has collected personal information notice about the business’s privacy practices. This privacy notice should typically be given at or before the time of collection of the information.

–   Right to access data. A business must respond to an employee’s verified request that the business confirm whether it has personal information about him or her, the type of personal information that the business keeps about the individual, and/or a copy of the specific information that the business has on file.

–   Right to be forgotten. A business must, in certain circumstances, delete the personal information it holds about employees. The right to be forgotten, also known as the right to deletion, has several exceptions, such as when the information is necessary to detect security incidents; to protect against deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity; to enable solely internal uses that are reasonably aligned with the expectations of the employee; to comply with a legal obligation; or to otherwise use the personal information, internally, in a lawful manner that is compatible with the context in which the information was provided.

–   Right to opt out of sale of information. A business must follow an employee’s direction not to sell the personal information that it holds about him or her. In the consumer context, this can be accomplished by including a “Do Not Sell My Personal Information” link on a website. In the employment context, many businesses are surprised to learn that allowing a service provider (for example, a life insurance company) to market additional products to employees may be interpreted as a “sale” of their personal information.

Maintaining Appropriate Data Security

The CCPA requires that businesses put into place “reasonable security procedures and practices” to help protect personal information from being breached. The CCPA does not define “reasonable security procedures and practices.” One possible source of guidance on this subject is the California Attorney General’s 2016 California Data Breach Report, a study of the data breaches reported to the AG from 2012 to 2015 (https://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/dbr/2016-data-breach-report.pdf). Though now several years old, the report offers insights into how the attorney general may seek to enforce the CCPA, and what factors a trier of fact may consider in deciding the “reasonableness” of a business’s data security procedures. Most significant is the attorney general’s endorsement of the Center for Internet Security’s Critical Security Controls, a set of 20 cybersecurity defensive measures (https://www.cisecurity.org/controls/).

Dealing With Service Providers

The CCPA allows businesses to share personal information with third parties or service providers for business purposes so long as there is a written contract that complies with the CCPA.

What are the Risks of Noncompliance with the CCPA?

Where personal information is breached as a result of a business’s failure to maintain reasonable security procedures and practices, an affected employee may sue for damages of $100-$750 per employee per incident or actual damages, whichever is greater. The statutory damages provision will likely incentivize plaintiffs’ lawyers to pursue large class actions every time a security breach exposes the personal information of California residents.

Where a business is in violation of any provision of the CCPA—including the privacy provisions as well as the data security obligation—for more than 30 days after notice of noncompliance, the attorney general may bring an action for civil penalties of up to $2,500 per violation or $7,500 per intentional violation.

What Actions Should Your Business Take Now?

Data Privacy

–   Review and update privacy notices to verify they meet the CCPA’s requirements

–   Review and update the methods for submitting requests to your business for access to, deletion of, or to opt-out of the sale of personal information, to verify they comply with the CCPA

–   Review and update policies or procedures for authenticating individuals that make access, deletion or opt-out requests

–   Draft a “play book” that provides standard communications that can be sent to individuals that make access, deletion or opt-out requests

–   Train employees on the handling of access, deletion or opt-out requests

–   Verify that the policies and procedures in place facilitate the timely fulfillment of access, deletion or opt-out requests

Data Security

–   Memorialize security policies and procedures in a written information security plan or “WISP”

–   Review whether your WISP conforms to a known industry standard or framework, and add any missing policies or procedures

–   Conduct periodic risk assessments to identify the primary risks to information

–   Train employees on your security policies and procedures

Service Provider Agreements

–   Review existing agreements with service providers, including payroll vendors and employee benefit plan providers, and review potential gaps

–   Make sure all service providers with access to information about Californians have agreements in place

–   Update all agreements to ensure they meet CCPA requirements

(Jennifer Jackson is the co-leader of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner’s Commercial Dispute Resolution Practice Group. She also co-leads the firm’s Agribusiness and Food Litigation Team. Her practice includes class action defense, commercial litigation, and product liability defense. She can be reached at (310) 576-2360 or [email protected])

Tags: , , ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, May / June 2019 Issue | No Comments »

Employees with Chronic Diseases: How it Impacts Businesses

May 8th, 2019

By Jennifer Schiffers, M.D.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a chronic disease is defined as a condition that lasts one year or more and requires ongoing medical attention or limits activities of daily living or both.

It’s a simple definition to a serious and pervasive problem in America. Currently six in 10 Americans have at least one chronic disease, making it one of the leading drivers of higher health costs. As an employer, here is what you need to know about chronic conditions:

The High Cost

The CDC reports that 90 percent of the nation’s annual 3.3 trillion in health care expenditures is spent on people with chronic and mental health conditions. While these costs are staggering, it doesn’t even account for the additional cost to employers for lost productivity and higher rates of absenteeism. Globally, the management of chronic diseases has been categorized into five areas—chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, diabetes, arthritis, and heart disease.

The Cause

So what is causing the continued rise in employees diagnosed with chronic conditions? Health professionals point to unhealthy lifestyle choices as a key contributor, which includes smoking, excessive alcohol drinking, lack of exercise and the consumption of too much sugar and processed foods.

A Solution

There is some light at the end of the tunnel for employers who want to be proactive in dealing with the impact of chronic diseases on their companies. More employers are implementing a chronic disease (or care) management program, which is an organized set of interventions that focus on the needs of the employee population. Employers that self-insure can purchase a chronic disease management program as an add-on to their employee health plan or a health plan carrier may include a chronic disease management program in the cost of their plan.

Western Growers Assurance Trust (WGAT) is an example of the latter. WGAT partners with Pinnacle Health Management (PHM) to offer a care management program at no cost to employees diagnosed with a chronic care condition. The program is included with every WGAT health plan purchased. You may ask yourself, what role does a care management program play in helping those with these conditions and promoting a healthy workforce? The WGAT care management program plays an important role in helping employees with chronic conditions work toward better health.

PHM’s dedicated care management staff guides a program participant on their journey to a healthier life and together, they can achieve great results. Our on-staff nurses and team constantly stay on top of new developments in the area of chronic conditions and are committed to providing the most competitive and advantageous programs to our members. Our data analytics also allow us to make customized recommendations to the employers, partnering with them to ensure a healthy, happy workforce.

How You Can Help

Patient adherence is the key to having better health outcomes for employees with chronic conditions. Nearly 80 percent of employees who drop their treatment plans will see worse symptoms down the road. Employers can take steps to ensure that their affected employees stay compliant with their treatment plans—whether provided through a chronic management program or personal physician. Below are some tips to help remove barriers to employees managing their chronic diseases:

1.  Help employees better manage medication costs by making it easier for them to access their meds. Financial barriers are becoming more of a problem as the price of medications continue to increase. Consider providing budget-friendly options if a participant says finances are an issue.

2.  Provide ways to help employees track their numbers remotely—such as a Bluetooth ability to track blood pressure. Consider putting numbers on a portal and into electronic health records—it can make medication adjustments easier.

3.  Ask your care management program provider, such as Pinnacle Health Management, to set up medication reminders or other treatment reminders to send to participants’ smartphones.

To receive more information about PHM’s care management program, which is included in every WGAT plan, you may contact a member of the health management team at (844) 230-1121.

Tags: ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, May / June 2019 Issue | No Comments »

We Are in This Together

May 8th, 2019

By Darcie Floyd

My understanding of the agriculture community and industry started from the very beginning. I grew up on a five-acre ranch in Sanger, CA, and participated in non-profit organizations like Girl Scouts and 4-H, which provide hands-on learning and education programs that teach children about responsibility, resiliency, hard work, and other life skills. Being the oldest, I was required to help take care of the various needs of the family ranch. Most of my time was spent dealing with many different animals and my (not so) favorite, walnuts!

There were a few years of walnuts for our family, but I was the most excited when my Dad decided to get rid of all the walnut trees. After years of helping him harvest, I did not want to pick up or de-hull another walnut. As I mentioned, I took care of the many different animals our family had. When I say animals, these were not pets. There were many different animals during those years: Lynx cats, exotic birds, rabbits, and goats, to name a few. In fact, I won best meat pen for my rabbits at the fair one year.

The type of work you have to do on a ranch definitely teaches you the value of a day’s work. Animals are depending on you for food and clean water and the walnuts, well, they don’t de-hull themselves! All in all, living and working on a ranch taught me so many life lessons, and it was always a family affair.

Being a woman who grew up in agriculture, and now works to provide employee benefits to those who work in agriculture, really gives me an interesting perspective on the community and industry as a whole. Employee benefits are such an important piece of the puzzle when it comes to making sure your hard-working employees are healthy and protected. They are continuously changing, but also staying the same. There are so many different products and services to choose from and yet, the end goal is always the same—to provide a quality employee benefits package. Employers are spending a great deal of time and resources to provide a package to their employees, so it is my job to make sure our clients get nothing but the very best and most current options.

I have always believed in order to bring value to a client, you first must listen and learn what the client needs. Even though agriculture is one industry, the human resource and employee needs of those companies within the industry vary. As I’ve serviced clients at Western Growers Insurance Services (WGIS), I’ve come to realize that their varying needs come with the same goal—wanting to offer a benefits package that is competitive and viewed as a benefit by the employee. To bring that right solution, one must learn about the company and its employees. In those moments, I believe my upbringing and background experience really come into play.

If there is one thing that WGIS offers in their products and services that people typically don’t know, it’s our incredible people. I think they are our greatest asset. Everyone genuinely cares about our members and are always looking to bring innovative solutions to our clients.

After discussing my background and view on the ever-evolving world of employee benefits, I would like to leave you with one last reminder—treat others how you want to be treated. Now I’m sure we’ve all heard this before but this mantra is something I take with me everywhere. From first meetings with clients to helping find their ideal business solution. It is so important to connect on a personal level, and to show that we are in this together.

 

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, May / June 2019 Issue | No Comments »

Colorado Equal Pay Act Signed into Law

May 28th, 2019

On May 22, 2019, Colorado Governor Polis signed the “Equal Pay for Equal Work Act” into law, one of the toughest state pay equity laws in the country.  Under the new law, employers are prohibited from paying an employee of one sex (including gender identity) a wage rate less than the rate paid to an employee of a different sex (or gender identity) for “substantially similar work,” when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility and regardless of job title, except where the employer demonstrates that the wage differential is based on at least one of the following:

  • a seniority system
  • a merit system
  • a production-based system;
  • the geographic location where the work is performed;
  • education, training or experience, to the extent they are reasonably related to the work in question;
  • travel, if a regular and necessary condition of the work;

The new law imposes two new notice requirements for Colorado employers. First, employers must make reasonable efforts to publicize all opportunities for promotion to all current employees on the same calendar day. In addition, employers must disclose in each posting for each job opening the hourly or salary compensation or pay range, and a general description of all benefits and other compensation offered.

Aggrieved employees may pursue a civil lawsuit, pursue administrative relief through the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, or avail themselves of an administrative mediation process.

Successful plaintiffs may recover up to three years of back pay and liquidated (double) damages, equitable relief (e.g., reinstatement, promotion) and attorneys’ fees. 

The Colorado law provides a limited safe harbor for employers who conduct proactive self-audits of their compensation practices. Employers who conduct a “thorough and comprehensive pay audit” within two years of the complaint may avoid an award for liquidated damages.

Similar to California law, Colorado law employers may not:

  • Seek the wage history of a prospective employee;
  • Rely on the wage history of a prospective employee to determine a wage rate; or
  • Discriminate or retaliate against a prospective employee for failing to disclose wage history.

The new law also prohibits employers from preventing their employees from discussing their compensation information with others or requiring employees to waive their rights to do the same.

The law applies to all employers employing any employees in Colorado and goes into effect January 1, 2021. Colorado employers should prepare for the new law by reviewing their pay policies and practices with employment counsel.  Employers should also consider conducting a proactive self-audit and remedying any unintentional or unlawful pay disparities in order to take advantage of the limited safe harbor.

Posted in News | No Comments »

Cal/OSHA Developing Emergency Regulations on Wildfire Smoke Protections

May 28th, 2019

California has had a banner year of rain and snow. Most of the state’s reservoirs are nearing capacity and the hills are still lush with greenery. However, wildfire season is rapidly approaching and these fires have the capacity to generate large amounts of wildfire smoke. Earlier this year, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board requested that Cal/OSHA develop an emergency regulation on adding further protections to workers from wildfire smoke. WG staff has been an active participant in this process to ensure that the proposed regulations are not overly broad in scope and that that they are easily understood and feasible for both workers and employers. It is expected that this emergency regulation will be presented to the Standards Board for adoption at their July 18th meeting in San Diego. Several key points of discussion have occurred about what the triggering event should be that would require employers to provide respirators to their employees and what training should be required under this regulation. In addition, WG staff has been advocating that it is critically important that this regulation provide an exemption to the existing requirement that employees undergo medical evaluation and fit testing of the respiratory prior to its use. This is an overly burdensome process and would not lend itself to employee safety in emergency situations.  

Click here to view the proposed emergency regulations.

For more information, contact Matthew Allen at (916) 446-1435.

Posted in News | No Comments »

Register for the CPS Ag Water Treatment RFP Webinar

May 28th, 2019

Join the Center for Produce Safety (CPS) as they host a free webinar overviewing the purpose of a new request for research proposals and the corresponding requirements to answer questions relating to water treatment. Following a pattern of multiple outbreak events, particularly from 2017 to 2018, and the strong association with continuing agricultural water risk concerns, a separate RFP for Ag Water Treatment was approved by the CPS Board of Directors. CPS representatives will provide the RFP background, guidance and proposal requirements. Research scientists and industry members are encouraged to attend.

WEBINAR DETAILS

CPS AG WATER TREATMENT RFP

Date: Tuesday, June 4, 2019

Time: 10:00 a.m. PDT

RSVP: CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

The webinar is free of charge, however registration is required and space is limited. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

 For more information about the webinar or CPS, send questions to [email protected]

 

Posted in News | No Comments »

Arizona Legislature’s 2019 Session Come to an End

May 28th, 2019

After approving an $11.8 billion budget on Monday evening, the Arizona Legislature adjourned for the year early this morning. Unfortunately, the budget was being held hostage for a policy bill, which is unprecedented but proved to be successful.

Among the biggest achievements in the budget was WG’s priority bill, the sales tax clarification for fertilizers and pesticides used in commercial ag production. Effective December 1, 2019, these products will be exempt from the states sales tax, saving nearly $15 million annually for farmers.

An additional $20 million of funding for the Central Arizona irrigation districts was also included in the budget to help them comply with the Drought Contingency Plan (DCP). There is a payback mechanism included to allow the state to be reimbursed if the feds cover the costs as originally intended in the DCP.

The state also provided $400,000 in general fund money to pay the rent for the State Ag Lab, rather than raiding industry funds to make the payment.

For more information on Arizona’s recently passed budget and adjournment, please contact AnnaMarie Knorr at (602) 451-0658.

Posted in News | No Comments »

Western Growers Insurance Services Hires Eric Trost as VP of Employee Benefits

May 13th, 2019

IRVINE, Calif. (May 13, 2019) – Western Growers is pleased to announce that Eric Trost has joined its Insurance Services team as Vice President of employee benefits. In this role, Trost will lead the expansion of Western Growers Insurance Services’ Employee Benefits capabilities, solutions and resources available to employers of all sizes. He will also support the growth and retention of the exclusive Western Growers Assurance Trust – a group health plan offered to members of the agricultural community.  

“Eric is consumer driven, employer focused and proactive in nature, which are qualities that will play a significant role in helping us ramp up our efforts to continue to offer quality insurance and health care options to the ag and food industry,” said Jeff Gullickson, Senior Vice President of Western Growers Insurance Services. “Eric’s strong leadership background and extensive employee benefits knowledge make him a perfect addition to the Insurance Services team.”

Trost has nearly 20 years of industry experience, with an extensive background in employee benefits, healthcare and risk management. Prior to joining Western Growers, he served as principal of Benefits Compass, a boutique employee benefits agency, where his primary responsibilities included production agency growth, strategic planning and client retention.

“I am very proud of the fact that I have always adhered to the simple philosophy of doing what’s in the best interest of my clients and am extremely pleased that this philosophy aligns strongly with Western Growers’ own culture and values,” said Trost. “Now, as part of Western Growers Insurance Services, I have access to more resources, experienced professionals in multiple disciplines and extensive insurance company relationships – all of which will provide added value to our current and future clients.”

Trost earned his Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from California State University, Long Beach.

Image of Eric Trost is available here.

About Western Growers Insurance Services:
Western Growers Insurance Services, Inc. is the wholly-owned insurance brokerage of Western Growers and offers full-service risk management solutions to agricultural and related industry members in California, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico. Since first offering health insurance and employee benefits back in 1986, WGIS has expanded to include property and casualty insurance, safety and loss control services and health care reform consulting. Connect with and learn more about Western Growers and WGIS on Twitter and Facebook. 

###

Posted in Press Releases | No Comments »

The Digital Edition of May/June Issue of Western Grower & Shipper Is Available Now

May 14th, 2019

The May/June issue of Western Grower & Shipper is now available online.

This issue includes:

The Football Gag: Will Immigration Reform Get Done This Year?

The “football gag” was a recurring joke featured in the comic strip, Peanuts. In the skit, Lucy van Pelt tells Charlie Brown that she will hold a football for him while he kicks it. After Charlie expresses some initial skepticism, Lucy always manages to persuade him to give it a try. Of course, every time Charlie approaches the football, Lucy pulls it away at the last second, causing him to fall flat on his back in pain. Lucy usually wraps up the gag by telling Charlie that he should not have trusted her.

Women Who Are Defying the Odds in Agriculture

In a society where stereotypes and myths are king, tales of heroines can often be overlooked. Social norms have long dictated how women are seen in the workplace, stymying the potential for significant progress in gender equality. These perceptions perpetuate phenomena such as the “gender gap” and the “glass ceiling”—the invisible barrier to professional advancement of females.

Ag Industry Hopeful Congress Will Act

Water infrastructure is a lot like the weather – everyone talks about it but nothing is ever done about it. Consider that the vast majority of water projects serving California were in the planning stage 80 to 90 years ago and were built in the 1940s. ‘50s and 60’s. Since then, there have been virtually no public projects and only a few smaller, privately-funded ones.

The Value of Diversity in Agriculture

Diversity in leadership is often a key asset to any company or industry, and while agriculture may lag others in diversity at the top, the industry is poised to make great strides and more closely reflect the demographics of the world it feeds. Just as a farmer understands the value of diversifying his or her crops, the industry as a whole is benefitting from efforts to include women and minorities in positions of management and ownership.

Federal Funding Promises Widespread Broadband Coverage

When Vice Chancellor Linda Thomas surveys the challenges facing the students at West Hills Community College in Coalinga, CA, lack of economic stability nears the top of the list. Few students can afford full-time, uninterrupted studies. They have to go to class, do homework and complete their coursework while working, taking care of family and just putting food on the table.

To read other articles included in this issue, click here.

For inquiries regarding Western Grower & Shipper magazine, please contact Stephanie Metzinger at (949) 885-2256.

Posted in News | No Comments »

U.S. Senator McSally, WG Leadership to Headline Water Panel in Arizona

May 9th, 2019

Western Growers, in partnership with Phoenix Business Journal, is hosting a special event on May 29 where U.S. Senator Martha McSally and members of the Arizona agricultural industry will discuss challenges surrounding Arizona’s water supply and quality. The event will also cover emerging precision agricultural technologies that aim to solve those issues.

Senator McSally, a member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, will start the event with a keynote address on the state of water in Arizona. The keynote will be followed by a fireside chat where WG board members, Robby Barkley (president/CEO at Barkley Ag Enterprises) and Will Rousseau (partner at Rousseau Farming Company); Dave Puglia (executive vice president at WG); and Sandy Fabritz (director of water strategy at Freeport McMoRan), will discuss everything from water to food safety to agricultural technology. They will be joined by Dennis Donohue, director of the WG Center for Innovation & Technology, who will guide the discussion as moderator. Both the keynote address and fireside chat will be followed by a Q&A session.

All WG members will receive a 25 percent discount off registration by using promo code: wga25. Sign up today!

EVENT DETAILS

Arizona Water: Supply, Quality, Food Safety and Innovation

Date: Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Time: 10:30am –1:00pm

Location: Arizona Commerce Authority (100 N 7th Ave #400, Phoenix, AZ 85007)

Cost: (registration fee includes lunch)

  • Non-members: $50.00
  • Western Growers members: $37.50

Register: CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

*discount code wga25 will appear as soon as WG members enter the number of tickets

For questions, contact Dennis Donohue at [email protected] or (831) 594-4883.

Posted in News | No Comments »

Register for the May 22 Lunch & Learn Webinar: The Global Reach of the U.S. Produce Industry

May 14th, 2019

On May 22, 2019, Western Growers Science & Technology is hosting a Lunch & Learn webinar to discuss current drivers and future trends of international trade of produce. Featured speaker Miguel I. Gomez will review the implications for those managing/planning activities for produce companies in an increasingly globalized produce industry.

Webinar Details

The Global Reach of the U.S. Produce Industry

Date: Wednesday, May 22, 2019

Time: 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Pacific Time.

Speaker:

  • Miguel I. Gomez, Associate Professor at Cornell University

RSVP: CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

This webinar is complementary to WG members.

Posted in News | No Comments »

D.C. Board Meeting Wrap-Up

May 16th, 2019

“With the Western Growers Board of Directors coming back to Washington, D.C., for more than a decade now, I am impressed by the depth of relationships that have been developed over the years with longtime representatives, and the level of intimacy that is present in many of our conversations,” remarked Albert Keck, president of Hadley Date Gardens and vice chairman of the Western Growers Board of Directors.

Keck’s observations highlight the significance of Western Growers’ annual board meeting in Washington, D.C., which provides an ongoing opportunity for association leadership to engage with administration personnel, regulatory officials and legislative representatives and advocate on behalf of the Western fresh produce industry.

“Overall, I thought it was a productive trip with positive engagements and great conversations,” stated Ron Ratto, president of Ratto Bros. and chairman of the Western Growers Board of Directors. “We were well-received by everyone we met with, and were routinely complimented on coming to Washington, D.C., to make our collective case.”

Over the past three days, more than two dozen Western Growers Board Members and Future Volunteer Leaders descended on the nation’s capital to generate positive movement in areas of importance to our membership, including international trade, farm bill implementation, immigration reform, food safety and water infrastructure.

In her first visit to Washington, D.C., in the capacity of Board Member, Alexandra Allen of Main Street Produce optimistically noted, “Many of the representatives we met with demonstrated an in-depth understanding of the labor challenges agriculture is facing and expressed a genuine and urgent desire to help facilitate a legislative solution that addresses both the existing workforce and a future flow of guest workers.”

In addition to immigration reform, Western Growers leadership pressed the Administration and Congress on the need to resolve the trade war with China and urged quick passage of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, as well as other topics ranging from food safety advisories to water infrastructure to automation research and development.

The D.C. Board Meeting concluded Wednesday evening and Thursday morning with face-to-face engagements with:

  • Ambassador Jose Antonio Zabalgoitia Trejo, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of Mexico
  • Frank Yiannas, Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy and Response, U.S. Food and Drug Administration
  • Ambassador Gregg Doud, Chief Agricultural Negotiator, U.S. Trade Representative

Posted in News | No Comments »

Cultivate Growth at the 2019 WG Annual Meeting

May 23rd, 2019

Join Western Growers in paradise as we host our 2019 Annual Meeting on November 10 – 13, 2019, at the Marriott Wailea Beach Resort in Maui, Hawaii. Registration is now open.

This year’s Annual Meeting will give attendees the privilege of networking with premier industry leaders, the opportunity to take part in educational workshops, and experience all of the services and benefits of our Western Growers family. Click here for the event overview.

Members can register today to receive the $995 early bird pricing for the full conference ticket. Member Guest Social Passes can also be purchased for $595. These rates will not last long so register today!

To register or for more information, visit http://www.wgannualmeeting.com/.

If you are interested in purchasing a Kid Pass, or if you have any questions regarding the registration process, please contact Cheryl Hall at (949) 885-2268.

Posted in News | No Comments »

Newer Entries »