A bipartisan bill introduced in Colorado seeks to repeal key provisions from a Farmworker Bill of Rights, arguing that a 2021 Supreme Court ruling makes these provisions unconstitutional. The bill sponsors claim that the Supreme Court decision invalidates a provision in Colorado’s law that prohibits employers from interfering with farmworkers’ access to service providers during breaks or off-hours. Farmworker advocates and service providers argue that the legislature is circumventing an ongoing legal review of this law and stripping farmworkers of gains made in the 2021 measure.
Project Protect Food Systems Workers, an organization fighting for food worker justice, points out the differences between Colorado’s law and California’s statute that the Supreme Court ruling addressed. While the Colorado law ensures access to all types of service providers for farmworkers during off-hours, California’s law allowed union organizers onto private property during work hours.
Opponents of the bill, including advocates for farmworkers and service providers, argue that ensuring access to service providers for farmworkers is crucial for their well-being, especially in light of the avian flu crisis and the challenges faced by undocumented workers. They emphasize that access to services is not just a workers’ rights issue but also a public health and economic stability issue.
The bill is set to appear before the Agriculture & Natural Resources committee in the Senate. Critics of the bill are concerned that repealing these provisions would hinder the progress made in protecting farmworkers and addressing abuses in the agricultural industry.
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