SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) - Words of appreciation are coming out throughout the Central Coast and across the state as the former "Cesar Chavez Day" has been renamed to "Farmworkers Day."
These workers are a key part of the local economy and can often be seen in the soil harvesting crops year round in areas, including Oxnard, Goleta, the Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria.
The number one Central Coast crop is strawberries, which are harvested by hand and involves bending over countless times during the day to fill baskets and boxes. Often the workers are hustling back and forth to trucks with the crops and get paid by how much they pick.
The pay depends in part by the market rate and the consumer demand.
In California, growers often receive payments based on the flats or boxes of berries brought in and that is around $2.50 per flat.
At the Santa Barbara Farmers Market, Kimmy Iniguez, with Sheppard's Farm, says the life of a farmworker is very hard. "The weather is a gamble and you don't know if it is going to be super hot. It is very rewarding in the end," she said while selling heads of cabbage, lettuce and many other row crops. She says, it is "a lot of back pain, but you just got to keep going."
At Tutti Fruiti Farms, Joseph Schiebel said the work takes place no matter what the conditions are. "It could be 85 degrees. It could be 45 degrees and no matter what they are out there working. They deserve the appreciation they get. It's a tough job."
The weather has been a factor lately with extreme heat waves off and on since November followed by a period of rain that can sometimes stop the harvest.
Some of the farmer workers are very mobile and will go from picking one crop to another depending on the harvest months. That means a grape picker could also be a strawberry picker.
Santa Barbara County recognizes its farm laborers with special groups annually holding a day of family activities, health check ups and outreach services they need.
With the changing of the holiday by Governor Gavin Newsom, among those to lead the effort has been State Senator Monique Limon from Santa Barbara, who is the State Senate Pro Tem and spoke out in front of the leadership on behalf of changing the holiday name to honor these workers.
(More details, photos and video will be added here later today.)
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