Another farm worker dies from heat stroke in Kern County

One year ago, when Kern County, Calif. table grape picker Asuncion Valdivia, 53, fell victim to 100-plus degree weather in July 2004, thousands of activists took online action to try to prevent more heat deaths. Yet last Wednesday, July 13, 2005--less than a year after Asuncion's death--another farm worker, Salud Zamudio Rodriguez, 42, succumbed to more than 105-degree heat while laboring in a bell pepper field outside nearby Arvin. Though co-workers attempted to hydrate and cool him when he began to shake and wave his arms frantically, the sweltering heat proved too intense. So once again we are asking you to help us create pressure to prevent further needless tragedies.

On Monday, July 18, United Farm Workers President Arturo Rodriguez used a news conference in Bakersfield to urge Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to issue an emergency regulation aimed at preventing more heat-related fatalities. The UFW is also calling on lawmakers to pass AB 805, by Assemblymember Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park), UFW-sponsored legislation requiring basic steps by growers to prevent and respond to heat illness. A state regulation on heat illness was first proposed in 1990. But the state has been dragging its heels for 15 years. Table grape growers last year ignored pleas from the UFW for voluntary preventive measures against heat stress.

Among the requirements of AB 805 would be adequate hourly rest breaks during heat waves; shaded rest areas, where feasible; training for foremen and supervisors in spotting heat illness, providing first aid and summoning emergency help. The bill passed the Assembly and is now in the state Senate.

Currently, a heat wave with triple-digit temperatures is hitting the Central Valley and other parts of California. Farm workers are toiling to supply food for people worldwide while putting their own lives at risk. Please honor their sacrifice by sending an e-mail today to Gov. Schwarzenegger and your state senator if you live in California supporting AB 805. The battle against heat stress is one farm workers cannot afford to lose.

http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/heatdeath705