After a two-year-long battle, last night the Farm Wage Board officially voted to change the overtime threshold for farmers. Two of the three-member board voted in favor of the reduction from 60 hours
While farmers throughout the state recently got a breather when it comes to having to pay more overtime to their workers, this issue will hang over them unless authorities come to their senses.
Last year, the state Department of Labor created a Farm Wage Board to determine if the threshold for overtime should be adjusted. Initiating this board was part of a law passed in 2019 to address farmworker concerns about various working conditions.
The Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act created a Farm Wage Board, consisting of one representative each from the Farm Bureau, state AFL-CIO and member of the public. Board members are authorized to hold hearings to determine if they wish to recommend a lower cap on overtime hours. It established the threshold for overtime at 60 hours, but the wage board could decide to lower it to 40 hours.