As climate change intensifies heat waves, New Jersey's migrant farmworkers face escalating health hazards like exhaustion, stroke, and dehydration.
Already laboring long hours in grueling conditions, farmworkers have little respite from the heat. Insufficient breaks, water access, and shade on the job compound the risks.
Sweltering lodgings without cooling provide no relief after work. Lost harvests from extreme weather also impact farmworker livelihoods. Many growers still prioritize profits over worker welfare.
To truly safeguard this vulnerable workforce, we need stepped-up government oversight and enforcement of labor protections, as well as industry-wide commitment to safety.
Farmworkers nourish our communities through back-breaking work and deserve protection. With smart planning and compassionate leadership, we can enable agriculture to thrive alongside the essential workers who sustain it.
Discover how climate change endangers New Jersey farmworkers in this illuminating article from Michael Sol Warren and Karen Yi of WNYC/Gothamist. Their timely reporting is just the first in a vital series investigating the impacts of rising heat on the state's agriculture industry. |