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Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Guidance for Agriculture
Cal/OSHA continues to develop guidance and resources for employers and workers to protect against COVID-19 and prevent the spread of the disease. Recently, Cal/OSHA has developed guidance related to COVID-19 infection prevention in agriculture. Links to this guidance, along with other agriculture-specific Cal/OSHA resources, are provided below. Cal/OSHA Agriculture Guidance Infection Prevention…
WG, Industry Send Letter on Demurrage Charges
WG joined 80 agriculture groups in sending a letter to National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow and USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue asking them to encourage the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) to adopt a rule curtailing unfair detention and demurrage penalties by ocean carriers and terminal operators. According to the letter, ocean carriers and terminal ...
WG Launches COVID-19 Webinar Series – Part One: Friday, June 26
On the heels of well-publicized COVID-19 outbreaks in meat-packing facilities across the country, there have been an increasing number of outbreaks on U.S. produce farms. To minimize the risks of disruption to our critical workforce, the CDC and Department of Labor recently released interim guidance for agriculture workers and employers. But how does this guidance ...
WG President and CEO Dave Puglia Appears on America’s Newsroom on Fox News
As farmers across America are facing severe economic hardship due to the coronavirus, Western Growers President and CEO, Dave Puglia, appeared on America’s Newsroom on Fox News today to discuss the collapse of the foodservice sector and the economic uncertainties facing the industry as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Click here to watch the ...
California Attorney General Sends Letter to Agricultural Operators Investigating COVID-19 Workplace Measures
The California Department of Justice has begun sending letters to certain Western Growers members announcing that the Attorney General is “conducting an examination of agricultural workplaces to ensure that adequate measures are being undertaken to protect the health and safety of agricultural workers.” The letter asks the receiving company for specific information about the company ...
Congressmen McCarthy, Nunes Appeal to USDA on Behalf of Calif. Specialty Crop Industry
Yesterday, in response to a letter sent by Western Growers and a coalition of California agricultural organizations, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Congressman Devin Nunes sent a letter to USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue urging him to develop a spending plan specifically for specialty crop growers. The letter states that California is the largest agriculture ...
WG Members Receive Less than 1% of USDA Direct Payments
As of June 23, USDA has allocated $4 billion of $16 billion in direct payments as part of its Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). Just over $84 million has been distributed to the specialty crop industry, or 2.1%. Livestock: $2 billion Non-Specialty: $1 billion Dairy: $895 million Specialty: $84 million For Western Growers member states ...
Children of Families in Agriculture Prioritized for Child Care Services in Calif.
In response to Calif. Governor Gavin Newsom’s recent Executive Order allowing for the reopening of state-subsidized before and after school child care facilities for essential workers, the Calif. Department of Education (CDE) issued a Management Bulletin prioritizing children of workers in the food and agriculture industry. Farm workers and others in agriculture will now have ...
USDA Issues Paycheck Protection Program FAQs
USDA has posted a set of FAQs on the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a guaranteed loan program administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA). The purpose of the program is to support small businesses and help support their payroll during the coronavirus situation. The PPP provides small businesses with funds to pay up to 8 ...
Register Now for WG COVID-19 Webinar Series – Part One: Friday, June 26
With peak summer harvest season rapidly approaching, many Western Growers members may still have questions about how to implement the CDC/OSHA interim guidance for agriculture workers and employers in their operations. To address practical applications of the guidance on farms and in facilities, Western Growers is teaming up with leading experts from UC Davis, Rutgers ...
Main Street Lending Program for Small and Mid-Sized Businesses Now Available
Businesses with up to 10,000 employees or less than $2.5 billion in 2019 annual revenues may be eligible for new or expanded financing under the Federal Reserve’s Main Street Lending Program. Small to mid-sized businesses that were in good financial standing before the crisis may be eligible for 4-year loans; principal and interest payments will ...
PPE Web Portal Available for California Businesses
Last week, Governor Newsom announced the creation of Safely Making California, an online web portal (The Marketplace) designed to connect California manufacturers to employers who have the need to purchase non-medical grade Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). As previously reported in Spotlight, Western Growers – along with the Ag Council, California Farm Bureau and several other ...
Digital Option Available for CFAP Applications
To date, just $113 million of the nearly $4.9 billion in funding through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) has been distributed to the specialty crop industry, only 2.3% of the total allocations. USDA’s Farm Service Agency announced that it will now accept applications for CFAP through an online portal, expanding the options available to ...
Feinstein, Senators Call on USDA to Provide Aid for Specialty Crop Producers
On Monday, Senator Dianne Feinstein (CA) led a bipartisan group of 29 Senators in calling on USDA to ensure that specialty crop producers receive financial aid for financial losses related to COVID-19. In a letter to Secretary Sonny Perdue, the group of Senators asks that as USDA specifies how the $9.5 billion disaster fund from ...
Western Growers COVID-19 Webinar Series
As many Western states enter peak summer harvest season, there is increasing concern over the potential impact of COVID-19 on the agricultural workforce. To minimize the risks of disruption to our farms and food supply, the CDC and U.S. Department of Labor recently released joint guidance for agriculture workers and employers. To facilitate industry-wide adoption ...
Ag Employer Crisis Management Briefing Now Available
Last Thursday, April 9, Western Growers hosted an Ag Employer Crisis Management webinar, presented by the Ag Labor Team at The Saqui Law Group. The webinar covered a range of timely and relevant topics, including: California’s Shelter-in-Place Order and Critical Infrastructure Exception Immigration Updates for H-2A Employers Labor Update Public Relations Workplace FAQs Workers’ Comp ...
WGIS Launches Connected Worker Program
Western Growers Insurance Services (WGIS) has officially launched the Connected Worker Program to help prevent injuries before they occur. Utilizing the latest advancements in wearable technology, the Connected Worker Program measures certain motions and detects unsafe movements of employees during their shift. The data is shared with the supervisor and used to identify risk trends, ...
Caltrans Authorizes Overweight Trucks to Deliver Emergency COVID-19 Supplies
According to a news release issued yesterday, Caltrans will temporarily issue special permits for overweight trucks transporting emergency supplies in support of COVID-19 relief and prevention efforts. Caltrans will issue permits for overweight trucks on the State Highway System and will help support transportation operators in obtaining permits from local agencies for local roads. These ...
COVID-19 Shared Housing and Transportation Webinar: July 9 – Registration Now Open
As many Western states enter peak summer harvest season, there is increasing concern over the potential impact of COVID-19 on the agricultural workforce. This Thursday, July 9, join Western Growers for part three of our COVID-19 webinar series, which will address the latest guidance related to shared housing and transportation in the fresh produce industry. ...
CDFA Updates List of PPE Suppliers
CDFA has updated their list of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) vendors, which was created to connect industry growers, packers, storage facilities, and other agricultural entities with suppliers. To the extent they can, CDFA is verifying the vendor on a surface level. However, because CDFA cannot fully vet the vendors, the buyer has an obligation to do ...