Santa Maria Farmworkers Demand Fair Pay at ‘May Day’ March

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – Farmworkers in Santa Maria are participating in the May Day labor boycotts and marches happening across the state.

They’re campaigning at City Hall for a base wage of $26 per hour.

Representatives of Alianza Campesina, Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE), and the Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP) say that low wages for California farmworkers constitute a public health crisis, not just an economic one.

Santa Maria farmworkers stayed off of work and out of school for may day, and many participated in a march to City Hall.

Recent research findings published by CAUSE and MICOP among others underscore that low wages are not solely an economic concern but a broader public health issue that harms individuals, families and communities as a whole.

Demonstrators say that ensuring livable wages would improve farmworker health and quality of life.

Representatives of both CAUSE and MICOP say farmworkers are among the most underpaid and exploited people in California due to their unlivable and inequitable wages.

“My stepfather, he is the one that sprays pesticides, and he's the one who has had major health conditions because he has done that,” says Cesar Vasquez, Rapid Response coordinator for 805Undocufund. “But at the same time, we have different unions that have advocated for health care for workers and have advocated for, better conditions in the workplace. We have to remember that this issue is long lasting and we always have to fight.”

These low earnings are juxtaposed against the highly skilled, hazardous and physically demanding nature of their work.

As part of the May Day labor boycotts, participants of this march hope their actions help remind the public, the health issues we’ve mentioned are on the Central Coast’s doorstep.

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