Howard P. Marguleas, 82, principal founder of Sun World International, a long time-member of Western Growers, passed away on June 1, 2017, following complications from cancer. Due to his forward-thinking approach to marketing fresh produce and tree nuts, Marguleas is viewed as an iconic figure in the produce industry. According to his obituary, Marguleas began ...
The first year of the 2017-2018 California legislative session is in full swing and the Legislature took action last week on hundreds of bills in order to meet the house of origin deadline. Several key labor, water and crop protection bills that WG has been actively lobbying are updated below. AB 5 (Gonzalez Fletcher, D-San ...
On June 7, 2017, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced its withdrawal of two administrative interpretations issued by the DOL in 2015 and 2016 relating to misclassification of joint employment and independent contractors. These two administrative statements issued by the Wage and Hour Division during the Obama administration expanded DOL’s interpretation of the…
This week, the Office of Arizona Governor Doug Ducey announced that Henry Darwin, Ducey’s Chief Operating Officer and the former Director of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, was selected to serve as Chief of Operations for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington, D.C. Darwin has served as COO since August of 2015 and ...
On July 1, 2017, Arizona’s new Paid Sick Time law goes into effect. To help members prepare and comply with the new rules, Western Growers will be conducting a live webinar on Wednesday, June 21, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. The webinar will highlight topics including the following: Minimum paid sick time benefits and alternatives Qualifying ...
The Labor Commissioner’s Office at the California Department of Industrial Relations is offering free licensing and application assistance workshops to current or prospective farm labor contractors on Friday, June 30 in Oakland. Free workshops are held every Friday in Fresno. Staff from the Labor Commissioner’s Office will be available for one-on-one assistance for first-time…
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced today that it will return to the practice of issuing opinion letters to provide guidance to employers and employees on questions arising under the Fair Labor Standards Act. After 70 years, the DOL stopped issuing opinion letters in 2010 in favor of issuing more broad policy statements known ...
On Wednesday, June 28, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. PDT, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification will host a webinar to educate stakeholders, program users, and other interested members of the public on recent program workload trends, common deficiencies and best practices associated with employer requests for H-2A applications for temporary labor certification. The objective for ...
In an effort to return power to the states and provide regulatory certainty to farmers and businesses, the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Army, and Army Corps of Engineers have taken the first of a two-step process to redefine ‘waters of the U.S.’ (WOTUS). President Trump issued an Executive Order this past February clearing the ...
This week, after receiving the bill from the California Assembly, the Senate Industrial Relations and Labor Committee advanced AB 450, legislation that puts private employers in a no-win situation between federal immigration enforcement and state enforcement by punishing employers who voluntarily comply with federal authorities. As has been previously communicated, Western Growers is part of…
Western Growers would like to remind members that our offices will be closed on Monday, July 3, and Tuesday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day. Western Growers wishes you and your families a very happy, safe and enjoyable holiday weekend!