COVID-19
Farmworker Justice is collaborating with farmworker-serving organizations and many other organizations to help farmworker families confront the very serious challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Farmworkers are considered “essential workers,” risking their health to ensure that we have access to fruits and vegetables. Farmworkers face numerous challenges to protect themselves and their family members from COVID-19 due to their working and living conditions. FJ and our partners developed policy recommendations that we shared with Congress and the Administration to ensure farmworkers are able to adequately protect themselves in the fields and at home. FJ will continue to monitor developments.
FJ has also coordinated the distribution of face masks to farmworkers. Learn more about these efforts.
A compilation of COVID-19 resources is below.
General resources
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Resources for workers
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Department of Labor
- Legal Aid of North Carolina, Farmworker Unit
- Maya Health Alliance Wuqu’ Kawoq
- – Audio, video and print resources in Spanish and Guatemalan Mayan languages
- – Additional video resources in Spanish and Guatemalan Mayan languages:
- Mixteco Indigena Community Organizing Project
- Rural Women’s Health Project
- University of Georgia Extension
Resources for farmworker-serving organizations
- California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc.
- Environmental Working Group
- Farmworker Justice
- – Issue Brief: COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Protections for Agricultural Workers; Updated January 2021
- – Fact Sheet – Interim COVID-19 Guidance from CDC and the U.S. Department of Labor For Agricultural Employers and Workers
- – Fact Sheet – Virginia Takes a Vital Step to Protect its Workers from COVID-19
- – See also our Farmworker Justice Policy Recommendations section below
- Farmworker Legal Services and Michigan Immigrant Rights Center
- Health Resources and Services Administration
- Health Center Resource Clearinghouse
- Migrant Clinicians Network
- National Association of Community Health Centers
- National Center for Farmworker Health
- U.S . Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
By State:
Arkansas
- Department of Health; Department of Agriculture
California
- Cal/OSHA
- – COVID-19 Prevention – Emergency Temporary Standards; Approved November 30, 2020
Colorado
- Department of Public Health & Environment
Kansas
- Department of Agriculture
- – COVID-19 Guidance for the Food & Agriculture Industry; Updated May 29, 2020
Maine
- Department of Health and Human Services; Department of Agriculture Conservation and Forestry, Maine Mobile Health Program
- Department of Labor
- – Guidance for Agricultural Employers in Maine for Addressing COVID-19; Updated May 4, 2020
Maryland
- Department of Agriculture
- – COVID-19 Guidance: Agricultural Workforce Training; Issued 6/25/2020
- – Temporary Worker Housing COVID-19 Guidance; Issued 6/25/2020
- – Agricultural Site COVID-19 Guidance: Maintain a Healthy Workforce; Issued 6/25/2020
- – COVID‐19 Facility/Site Compliance: Agricultural Safe Business Preactices, Face Covering & Social Distancing Compliance Checklist; Issued 6/25/2020
Massachusetts
- Department of Agricultural Resources
Michigan
- The Office of Governor Gretchen Whitmer
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity; and Occupational Safety and Health Administration
- Emergency Rules; Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19); Issued 10/14/2020
New Jersey
- Departments of Health, Agriculture, and Labor & Workforce Development
New Mexico
- State of New Mexico
- – All Together New Mexico: COVID-Safe Practices for Individuals and Employers; January 18, 2021 (see page 31)
New York
- Department of Health & Department of Agriculture and Markets
- – Interim Guidance for Prevention and Response of COVID-19 at Farms; Revised May 27, 2020
- Department of Agriculture and Markets
- – COVID-19: Guidance and Resources for the Ag Community; Updated July 14, 2020
- – Interim Guidance for Horticulture; Issued May 15, 2020
- Department of Health, Department of Labor, and Department of Agriculture and Markets
- – Coronavirus (COVID-19) Tips; Revised May 27, 2020
- – Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Operator Checklist for Farms; Revised May 27, 2020
- Office of the Governor
North Carolina
- Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; Department of Health and Human Services
- Department of Health and Human Services
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- – Interim Guidance for Migrant Farmworkers, Their Employers, and Housing Providers; Issued October 8, 2020
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North Dakota
- Department of Agriculture
Oregon
- Oregon Health Authority
- Office of the Governor
- – Executive Order No. 20-58: Enhanced Health and Safety Requirements for Certain Employer-Provided Housing During Agricultural Off Season In Response To Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak; Issued October 23, 2020 [The Executive Order extended the requirements of employer-provided housing (Section 2) of the Temporary Administrative Rule.]
- Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
- – Temporary Administrative Rule Addressing the COVID-19 Emergency in Labor Housing and Agricultural Employment; In effect beginning May 11, 2020; due to expire October 24, 2020 [Executive Order 20-58 extended the requirements of employer-provided housing (Section 2) of this Temporary Rule. Labor-intensive agricultural operation (Section 1) and agricultural transportation (Section 3) of the Temporary Rule expired on October 24, 2020 and are no longer in effect.]
Pennsylvania
- Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture
- COVID-19 Guidance: Farms and On-Farm Deliveries; Updated May 4, 2020
- – COVID-19: Modifications to Seasonal Farm Labor Camp Requirements; Updated April 20, 2020
Rhode Island
- Department of Environmental Management; Department of Environmental Health
- – Phase I guidelines for farms and on-farm deliveries; Issued April 24, 2020
- Department of Health
- – Guidance for Businesses with Seasonal Workers Housed in Communal Living Arrangements; Updated December 21, 2020
Tennessee
- Department of Agriculture
- Slowing the Spread of COVID-19: Guidance for Farms and Forestry Businesses; Updated October 13, 2020
- Department of Health
- – COVID-19 Prevention, Monitoring and Management for Agricultural Settings; Issued September 8, 2020
Virginia
- Department of Labor and Industry
- – 16VAC25-220, Final Permanent Standard for Infectious Disease Prevention of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus That Causes COVID-19
As Adopted by the Safety and Health Codes Board on January 13, 2021; Effective January 27, 2021
- – 16VAC25-220, Final Permanent Standard for Infectious Disease Prevention of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus That Causes COVID-19
- Farmworker Justice
Washington
- Office of the Governor
- – Proclamation 20-57.1 Concerning the Health of Agricultural Workers; Updated August 19, 2020
- – Agricultural COVID-19 Requirements: General Provisions for All Worksites and Work-Related Functions; Updated August 19, 2020
- Workplace and Transportation Requirements (pdf) and Interpretive Guidance (pdf); Issued August 19, 2020
- Department of Health
- – Public Health COVID-19 Guidance: Farm and Agricultural Workers in Washington State; Updated May 27, 2020
- – Guidance for Temporary Worker Housing; Revised Emergency Rules – WAC 246-358-002; Updated January 8, 2021
- Department of Labor & Industries
- – Coronavirus (COVID-19) Prevention in Agriculture and Related Industries; Issued April 2020
- Additional requirements to protect occupants in temporary worker housing from 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) exposure (WAC 296-307-16102); Adopted May 13, 2020 and effective from January 8, 2021 through May 8, 2021
- DOSH Hazard Alert: Wildfire Smoke and Dust Masks during the COVID-19 Pandemic; Issued Sptember 2020
- Pacific Northwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center
Wisconsin
- Office of the Governor, and Department of Health Services
Farmworker Justice Policy Recommendations
- – FJ & MCN Comments to the CDC on Allocation of Initial Supplies of COVID-19 Vaccine – December 20, 2020
- – Comments on the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Protection Emergency Regulation – November 18, 2020
- – Written comments on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Draft Preliminary Framework for Equitable Allocation of a COVID-19 Vaccine – September 4, 2020
- – As COVID-19 Cases Soar, Trump Administration Rejects Requests for Safety Protections for Farmworkers under H-2A Agricultural Guestworker Program – July 14,2020
- – Farmworker Justice Statement on Trump Administration Testimony by OSHA and NIOSH before the House Education and Labor Committee – May 28, 2020
- – Environmental Working Group and Farmworker Justice Statement: Congress Should Tap CCC Funds to Help Farmworkers – May 22, 2020
- – Farmworker Justice Statement on USDA-FDA MOU to Keep Farms & Packing Houses Running Despite Worker Illness from the Pandemic – May 20, 2020
- – Farmworker Justice Press Statement for EWG Press Call on Rep. Khanna and Sen. Warren’s Essential Workers Bill of Rights – April 30, 2020
- – Letter to Congress by Farmworker Justice and Other Organizations Advocating for Farmworkers Priorities in Next CARES Bill – April 22, 2020
- – Farmworker Advocates Seek Protections Against COVID-19 for Agricultural Guestworkers – March 25, 2020
- – Statement by Farmworker Advocates on COVID-19 and the Risks to Farmworkers – March 20, 2020
- – Unique Coalition Seeks Administration’s Support on Rural Health Care in COVID-19 Crisis – March 19, 2020
- – Farmworker Justice Statement: Our Dedication to Helping Farmworker Families Confront the Challenges of COVID-19 – March 17, 2020
- – The Promise of Telehealth: Increasing Access to Quality Healthcare in Rural America (2018; Joint report by Farmworker Justice, Campesinos Sin Fronteras, Vista Community Clinic, and the Harvard Law School Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation)