New York Farm Bureau President David Fisher made the following statement following the New York Department of Labor's recommendation to lower the regular work week for farmer laborers from 60 weeks to 40 weeks, among other recommendations.
Fisher said, "This is a difficult day for all those who care about New York being able to feed itself. Commissioner Reardon's decision to lower the farm labor overtime threshold will make it even tougher to farm in this state and will be a financial blow to the workers we all support. Moving forward, farms will be forced to make difficult decisions on what they grow, the available hours they can provide to their employees, and their ability to compete in the marketplace. All of this was highlighted in the testimony and data that the wage board report and the commissioner simply ignored."
Categories: New York, Government & Policy, Rural Lifestyle