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Committee reviews bill to extend minimum-wage and overtime protections to agricultural workers and add farm‑housing inspections
Summary
A legislative committee heard a walkthrough of a bill that would remove the exemption for agricultural workers from the state minimum-wage law, create overtime pay beginning at 60 hours per week, and require surveys and inspections of farm employee housing with enforcement routed through the Department of Labor and Division of Fire Safety.
A legislative committee on agricultural policy on Wednesday received a detailed walkthrough of a bill that would make agricultural workers eligible for the state minimum wage, establish overtime pay beginning at 60 hours per week, and add a new inspection and enforcement regime for farm employee housing.
The presenter, Sophia, told the committee the draft “does essentially does 3 3 primary things”: include agricultural workers within the state minimum‑wage law, provide overtime at time‑and‑a‑half for hours above 60 in a workweek, and require surveys and inspections of employer‑provided farm housing with mechanisms to address violations.
Why it matters: The change would remove a longstanding statutory exemption for people employed in agriculture and bring them under the Fair Employment Practices Act’s minimum‑wage and overtime provisions. The bill also seeks to create a survey tool and inspection pathway to address housing adequacy — a frequent subject of testimony during the legislative study that produced a December 2024 report referenced by the…
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