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Senate hearing splits as bill would extend collective bargaining rights to farmworkers
Summary
Supporters said SB 60 45 would correct a century‑old exclusion of agricultural workers from collective bargaining; growers warned card‑check certification and mandatory arbitration risk harvest disruptions and could harm farm viability. No vote was taken.
Senate Labor and Commerce Committee members heard hours of testimony on SB 60 45, a bill that would place agricultural employees under the jurisdiction of the Public Employment Relations Commission and create a process for union certification and interest arbitration.
The bill report, read by committee staff Jarrett Sachs, said PERC could certify a bargaining representative either through a cross‑check (card‑check) when an organization submitted federal LM forms within two years and a showing of interest above 50 percent, or otherwise by a secret‑ballot election. Sachs said the bill excludes supervisors, managers, confidential employees, employees covered by the NLRA, cannabis workers and members of an employer’s…
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