California Takes Steps to Protect Underage Farmworkers
California officials have announced new enforcement actions to safeguard the well-being of underage farmworkers, including enhanced coordination between two state agencies responsible for inspecting work conditions in the fields. This move comes after an investigation by Capital & Main, produced in partnership with the Los Angeles Times and McGraw Center for Business Journalism, revealed that the state is failing to protect underage farmworkers who labor in harsh and dangerous circumstances.
Thousands of children and teenagers work in California fields to provide Americans with fresh fruit and vegetables. While laborers as young as 12 can legally work in agriculture, many described being exposed to toxic pesticides, dangerous heat, and other hazards. The new enforcement efforts will be overseen by the state Labor and Workforce Development Agency, which directs key agencies charged with regulating child labor and worksite safety laws, officials said.
Joint Operations to Increase Enforcement Presence
Officials said the state’s Bureau of Field Enforcement, which regulates child labor and wage and hour laws, is developing plans to conduct joint operations with an existing agricultural enforcement task force assigned to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, known as Cal/OSHA. Inspectors from the two agencies typically perform field operations separately and enforce different laws. Working together will enable the state to “increase its presence in the fields and its capacity to identify violations,” according to Crystal Young, deputy secretary of communications for the Labor and Workforce Development Agency.
The agency is also overseeing an effort to share data among enforcement teams from departments such as the Agricultural Labor Relations Board, Department of Industrial Relations, and Employment Development Department. Sharing information, Young said, will “further bolster our ability to identify potential violations for investigation.” In a written statement, she said that state officials have been actively enforcing child labor rules across all industries, assessing 571 violations that resulted in “millions of dollars in penalties” from 2017 through 2024.
Jose, seen at 13, picks strawberries in the Salinas Valley.
(Barbara Davidson / Capital & Main)
Addressing the Root Causes of Underage Farmwork
Worker advocates lauded the plans for increased enforcement as steps in the right direction. However, they emphasized that any long-term solutions need to address issues such as low wages and poverty, which drive minors to work in the fields to help their families pay rent and put food on the table. “Being able to support farmworker families through a living wage, you know, is one of the ways that we can really address this issue,” said Erica Diaz-Cervantes, 25, a former underage strawberry picker who is now a senior policy advocate for the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy.
Other efforts are underway, nationally and in California, to address issues involving underage farmworkers. U.S. Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Palm Desert) recently reintroduced legislation that would change the federal minimum age for farmworkers from 12 to 14 years old for most farm jobs, as well as strengthen enforcement and improve nationwide data collection on injuries and fatalities.
