As the result of a U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division Tomato Strike Force initiative, penalties are being imposed against two agricultural employers in western North Carolina that violated provisions of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.  The investigations are part of an initiative undertaken by the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division to ensure that migrant and seasonal workers’ rights were protected and employers adhered to rules concerning child labor during this year’s tomato harvest in North Carolina. Before the harvest season began, Wage and Hour Division staff met with growers and farm labor contractors to educate them on the applicable federal labor laws.

“A positive result from our efforts at educating employers was that we found no child labor violations during the tomato harvest, although we still found some employers failing to fully meet their obligations to their migrant and seasonal workers,” said Oliver Peebles III, the Wage and Hour Division’s regional administrator in Atlanta, Ga. “Wage and Hour Division investigators will continue to actively work with agricultural communities to ensure that migrant workers and minors receive the protection afforded them under federal labor laws.”

Perez Brothers Produce Inc. in Hendersonville, N.C., was assessed $6,700 in penalties after investigators found that the employer failed to disclose employment conditions to workers, post a MSPA poster at the worksite, make and keep employer records, pay wages when due and ensure that each driver of a transportation vehicle had a valid driver’s license.  (click on link to read full story)