Great news today from our brothers and sisters at the United Farm Workers:
THREEMILE CANYON FARMS AND UFW SIGN COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT
(July 16, 2007, Boardman, OR) Threemile Canyon Farms and the United Farm Workers Union (UFW) announced today that they have entered into a collective bargaining agreement covering dairy and farm workers. The agreement, the first of its kind in Oregon, was ratified this week, bringing to an end all labor disputes between the UFW and Threemile Canyon Farms.
“This is an important milestone for Threemile Canyon Farms”, said Marty Myers, the General Manager at Threemile Canyon Farms. “It allows us to continue putting our values into practice in the form of a formal agreement that respects and protects workers. It also brings an end to all disputes and provides a way for all future issues to be solved peacefully. Lastly, it gives us the opportunity to focus on what we do best: producing healthy, high quality food products and bringing them to market in ways that earn the trust of our customers, neighbors and employees”, said Myers.
“Just as we remember our past,” said Arturo Rodriguez, UFW President, “we recognize that this agreement blazes a new agricultural path into the 21st century. The UFW is proud of our members and this new partnership, building respect for farmworkers. We look forward to working with Threemile Canyon Farms and joining in the promotion of their fine agricultural products. This agreement lays the groundwork for a new period in Oregon’s agricultural heritage providing stability for growers and fairness for farm workers. We honor our entire membership, native-born and immigrant, men and women in this is a new era of cooperation and mutual benefit for both the farm and them”.
Threemile's workers have been trying to join together in a union since 2003. In November of last year, a neutral arbitrator certified Threemile's workers as the winners in a majority sign-up election.