AlO-Lanctttor Farming, Saturday, April 23, 1994
OPINION
Seasonal Farm Labor Act
Could Do You In
In 1978, the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed the Sea
sonal Farm Labor Act-legislation. The Act mirrored federal
law that stipulates housing and working conditions’ standards
for migrant farm workers, employed at a particular farm on a
limited and temporary bases. According to the Pennsylvania
Farm Bureau this act was approved to regulate working condi
tions for seasonal employees, not full-time employees on the
farm.
The law functioned reasonably well until several court chal
lenges brought by “social advocates” caused regulatory agen
cies to “revise” their interpretations of this legislation.
For example, the Pennsylvania Department of Environment
al Resources (DER) recently issued (Jan. ’94) revised regula
tions that classify housing, provided by fanners to many of our
year-round farm employees as “migrant labor camps” and sub
jects it to inspection by DER. These employees may have
worked for the same farmer for ten years, living in the same
house provided by the farmer-employer. However DER’s new
regulations now classify many homes of year-round farm em
ployees as “migrant labor camps.”
To make matters worse, the law makes it unlawful for any
one (including the fanner or any housing occupant) to interfere
with or prohibit access of another person to this “migrant”
housing. This is not just to DER inspectors, but to anyone that
has an interest in the “health, safety, welfare, or dignity” of the
occupants.
Many year-round employees of farmers now must deal with
the fact that their homes have now been magically transformed
by DER into “migrant labor camps.” By law, or interpretation
of it, has made it impossible for the occupant of these houses to
legally control access to their own home.
In other areas under the law, so-called social advocates have
split “regulatory hairs” to pressure farmers into paying monies
to farm workers under the threat of lengthy and costly litiga
tion. The privacy of farm workers is ignored and work on the
farm disrupted by these social advocates. They gain access to
farm workers under liberal and ambiguous interpretation of the
law. Once in contact with workers they file charges on theoreti
cal legal violations, causing havoc in the workers’ life and in
the daily operation of the farm.
Farmer-employers are considered guilty under these regula
tions and must prove themselves innocent. Unfortunately, the
farmer would need a “Ross Perot” bankroll to fight these tech
nical legal charges. There are few fanners willing or able to af
ford the prolonged legal process. The farmer is forced to make
an economic decision, instead of defending his innocence. The
fanner doesn’t want to subject himself, his family and his busi
ness to spend months and even years in court fighting false
charges. Thus, his only real road to legal freedom is to negoti
ate a settlement to get the charges dropped.
The harassers leave this fanner and impose the same form of
torment on another farmer, who is caught in the identical legal
web with the same guaranteed results. The law protects the
rights of the harassers at the expense of the seasonal farm work
er and the farmer-employer. We don’t believe this was the in
tent of the General Assembly when it passed the Seasonal Farm
Labor Act.
Legislation, S.B. 1255 introduced by Senator Patrick Staple
ton, strikes a reasonable balance in the scope of regulation im
posed under the Seasonal Farm Labor Act upon farmers em
ploying and housing farm workers. You will want to contact
your state legislator on this one.
Farm Calendar
Clever Clovers 4-H Central NJ.
Sheep Demonstration, Concor
de Stud Farm, 10:30 a.m.-3
p.m.
Guernsey Breeders Association
Pennsylvania Blue Halter Sale,
Bedford.
Old Time Plow Boys Club Annual
Spring Plowing Show, Pa. Ger
man Heritage Center, Kutz
town University, 11 a.m.-S
p.m., thru April 24.
Llama and Aplaca Festival, Tol
land Agricultural Center, Ver-
7£~j
non, Conn., 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Penn State Dairy Expo, Ag Arena,
University Park.
Northwest All-Breed Calf Sale,
Crawford County Fairgrounds,
Meadville, 11:30 a.m.
Tractor and Truck Pull, Carroll
County Ag Center, Westmin
ster. Md.
Delmarva Poultry Booster Ban
quet, Wicomico Youth and Civ
ic Center, Salisbury, Md.
DER public meeting on Draft
(Turn to Pago All)
To Be Prepared
For Fires
Fires may erupt at anytime with
out warning. If they do occur, are
you prepared to deal with them
effectively and in a safe manner?
Some items you should
consider:
• Do you have fire alarms and
smoke detectors installed at
strategic locations for early warn
ing? Are they functional? Do you
change the batteries twice a year?
• Do you have an evacuation
plan for your family and farm ani
mals? Is the plan rehearsed? Is
there a place where family mem
bers are to assemble after evacua
tion so they may be accounted for?
• Are fire extinguishers
installed in critical places around
the home, bam, shop and equip
ment? Are they operational and
serviced once a year? Do family
members and workers know how
to use them?
• Have you checked your home
and farm to identify and eliminate
all fire hazards?
To Control
Coccidiosis
In Calves
Glenn Shirk, extension dairy
agent, reminds us coccidia organ
isms may severely impair the
health and vigor of calves starting
at a very young age.
Coccidia oocysts may survive
six months or more in the soil and
fecal matter. Thus, reinfections are
a continued threat to young cattle.
The organism may be killed by
extreme temperatures and by pro
longed exposure to hot, dry, sunny
conditions. Therefore, it is no sur
prise that coccidiosis is more of a
problem during periods when cool,
wet, sloppy conditions prevail.
Moving calf hutches to new
locations that have been exposed
to clean, sunny conditions may
help reduce the risk. Calves may
be exposed to coccidia organisms
soon after birth and for months
thereafter.
Farm Forum
Editor,
Your newspaper is always
full of great things to do with agri
cultural business. From 4-H news
to advertising fertilizer. Every
thing is positive. You try to report
the good and bad points of life, the
highs and lows. Well it is, my
opinion it’s time for the readers to
wake up and admit there is a prob
lem! Yes a Problem! We as dairy
farmers are not getting enough
money for our milk! There I said
it. Some of us selling our milk to
Co-ops own the Co-ops. We pay
for every one of our employees
from general manager to milk
(Turn to'Pag* A 27)
Calves raised in close confine
ment and calves under stress are at
greatest risk. Thus, it is recom
mended that calves be fed a cocci
diastat in their milk replacer and
calf starter and coccidial com
pounds be fed until cattle weigh
800 pounds.
Coccidiosis is not a problem in
all herds. For additional advise and
recommendations on coccidiosis,
consult your veterinarian.
To Count All
Agricultural Jobs
Farming has changed a lot over
the last 80 years. Today, many of
the jobs performed on die farm at
the beginning of the century are
now performed off the farm.
Farm- and farm-related indus
tries account for 23 million jobs in
the United States. This represents
about 17 percent of total
employment.
Nearly 71 percent of all farm
and farm-related jobs are located
in metropolitan counties. Agricul
tural wholesale and retail trade
BY lAWHENCE W ALTHOUSE j
m
MSQ.2S
sn
ON DESTROYING GOD'S
WORK?
April 24, 1994
Background Scripture
Romans 14
Devotional Reading
Romans 15: 1-17
If I had the power to do so, I
would decree that every Christian
congregation read publicly the
14th chaper of Romans every Sun
day for the next year. For Romans
14 has a lesson for Christendom
that is not being heard and obeyed:
“Do not.. . destroy the work of
God” (14:20).
The reason that the message
does not get through to many of us
is that we think of ourselves as ad
vancing, rather than destroying,
the work of God. Destroying the
work of God, we think, means de
nying the gospel. Speaking
against Jesus Christ, committing
heresy, blocking the churches in
their efforts. I’m sure that all of
the above can be harmful to the
work of God, but none so destruc
tive as passing judgment on
others.
In Romans 14 Paul repeatedly
draws our attention to this destruc
tive behavior. “Who are you to
pass judgment on the servant of
another?” Paul asks (14:4), “Why
do you pass judgment on your bro
ther?” (14:10). And: “Then let us
no more pass judgment on one an
other. , .”(14:13). That should be
sufficient repetition to get our at
tention, but apparently it isn’t, for
often people standing outside the
Christian faith frequently con
clude that judging other Christians
is what Christianity is all about
For many of us, it is what we seem
to do best
IN GOD’S PLACE
Having stated and restated his
admonition, Paul goes on to show
us why judging one another is des
tructive to God’s work. For one
thing, it puts us in the place where
only the Lord himself should be.
Judgment belongs to God, not us.
He is master of us all, including
those whom we think are as wrong
as they can be. That’s why he asks
“Who are you to pass judgment on
the servant of another?” Are we
the master of others? “It is before
his own master that he stands or
account for two thirds of these jobs
or about IS percent of total metro
politan employment.
This wholesale and retail trade
segment is the fastest growing seg
ment of agricultural employment
These jobs are located in metropo
litan areas because they depend on
the size and growth of consumer
markets, according to Alan Shock,
extension farm management
agent
Thus, we need to rethink who is
a farmer and count these farm
related jobs as agriculture. As
number of jobs decline in produc
tion agriculture, farmers need to
expand their thinking to build
political coalitions with people in
jobs related to fanning and small
independent business owners.
By including these people who
have similar concerns, farmers
regain the numbers necessary to
have influence in public policy.
Feather Profs Footnote:
"Nothing in the world can take the
place of persistence and determi
nation.” Calvin Coolidge
falls.” What he’s really saying is
‘Do you think you are God?’
When we presume to judge an
other person we are consciously or
unconsciously trying to take
God’s place. Even an idiot should
be able to realize how dangerous
that is for our own souls.
Secondly, we endanger .our
selves because, despite our own
perceptions, we all stand on the
same ground before our divine
Judge. “For we shall all stand be
fore the judgment seat of God”
(14:10). Each of us has enough to
be concerned with our own securi
ty in the face of God’s judgment.
“So each of us shall give account
of himself to God.” That is why in
the Lord's prayer, Jesus counsels
us to pray, “Forgive us our tres
passes as we forgive those who
trespass against us.” Judgment of
others is probably the riskiest,
most self-destructive thing a
Christian can do.
STUMBLING BLOCKS
Third, our purpose as Christians
is to help our brothers, not to
judge or otherwise injure them.”
... rather decide never to put a
stumbling block in the way of a
brother (14:13). If you have any
doubt as to whether your behavior
is judgmental or not, just ask your
self: “Am I putting a stumbling
block in someone else’s way?” If
the answer is “yes" or even “may
be,” you’ve got a spiritual prob
lem that, should you ignore it,
could be monumental in its conse
quences.
And then, if you still have
doubts, measure yourself and your
attitudes toward others against
Paul’s rule-of-thumb: “For the
kingdom of God does not mean
food and drink but righteousness
and peace and joy in the Holy
Spirit... Let us then pursue what
makes for peace and mutual up
building” (14:19).
If your attitude and actions to
ward others, particularly those
you think wrong, “makes for
peace and mutual upbuilding,”
then you won’t have to worry
about destroying the work of God.
Lancaster Farming
Established 19SS
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main SL
Ephrata, PA 17522
by
Lancaatcr Farming, I no.
A SMhnan ErHwprtM
Robert G. Campbell General Manager
Event R. Nwwunnger Managing Editor
CepyrlgM 1(04 by Unoaatar Farming