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Investigate Midwest (https://investigatemidwest.org/category/labor/)

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Labor

  • Related Topics:
  • Migrants
  • farmworkers
  • Migrant farmworkers
  • OSHA
  • Missouri
Agribusiness

TOP TAKEAWAYS: Five things to know from our investigation into Illinois’ monitoring of human pesticide exposure

By Midwest Center Staff | April 14, 2022

These are the most important things to know about our latest investigation.

Agribusiness

How Illinois’ ‘fragmented system’ of monitoring pesticide exposure ‘allows individuals to get poisoned over and over without any brakes’

By Sky Chadde, Investigate Midwest, and Amanda Perez Pintado, Investigate Midwest/Report for America | April 14, 2022

A crew of farmworkers claimed they were sprayed with pesticides. What should have been a “rapid response” was a “big mess.”

Labor

“Keeping our drivers happy”: Trucker shortage leading to empty store shelves compels companies to increase wages

By Amanda Perez Pintado, Investigate Midwest/Report for America | January 11, 2022

“We've had to go back to our customers and request additional compensation to be able to make sure our drivers were getting paid enough,” an owner of a trucking company said.

Climate Change

‘Temperatures continue to rise and farmworkers continue to be at risk’

By Ignacio Calderon, USA TODAY Network Agriculture Data Fellow, Investigate Midwest | October 21, 2021

At least 65 farmworkers have died from heat-related causes since 2002, according to an Investigate Midwest analysis of OSHA data. The Biden administration has promised to address the dangers of extreme heat in workplaces.

Labor

Human trafficking has long haunted agriculture. Experts fear it flourished during the pandemic.

By Amanda Perez Pintado, Investigate Midwest/Report for America | September 23, 2021

At times, the H-2A visa program that brings non-citizen farmworkers to the U.S. has been used to facilitate human trafficking, experts and activisits said. But the number of people trafficked through the program appears to have increased.

Labor

As labor pool shrinks, Illinois farmers turn to foreign workers

By Amanda Perez Pintado, Investigate Midwest/Report for America | September 9, 2021

Farms across the Midwest are struggling to hire domestic employees. In Illinois, the number of foreign agricultural workers has increased more than 250% in the past five years.

Coronavirus

DOL watchdog: OSHA’s virtual inspections during pandemic likely led to dangerous workplaces

By Sky Chadde, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting | March 3, 2021

While complaints increased, overall inspections dramatically decreased, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.

Agribusiness

The CDC recommended states prioritize farmworkers for the COVID-19 vaccine. A few large agricultural states have not.

By Frank Hernandez, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting | February 18, 2021

A few states with large agricultural populations have, so far, left farmworkers out of their COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Coronavirus

Without federal oversight, some states protect workers from COVID-19, others shield businesses from lawsuits

By Frank Hernandez, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting | December 16, 2020

Advocates have said safety measures need to be enforceable in order to protect workers. Without the feds, some states have stepped in and done so.

Agribusiness

With no guaranteed protections from COVID-19, agricultural workers face tough decision: protect their lives or retain financial security

By Frank Hernandez, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting | September 21, 2020

Some states have enforced rules to prevent COVID-19's spread among farmworkers, but the federal government hasn't done so, leaving many workers unprotected, advocates said.

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About Us

Investigate Midwest is an independent, nonprofit newsroom. Our mission is to serve the public interest by exposing dangerous and costly practices of influential agricultural corporations and institutions through in-depth and data-driven investigative journalism.

The American Farm Bureau Federation claims it’s the ‘Voice of Agriculture.’ These groups beg to differ.

Database: Tracking Covid-19’s impact on meatpacking workers and industry

USDA photo by Preston Keres

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) meat inspectors and graders perform their mission.

SERESTO: what we’ve discovered so far about the popular collars linked to pet injuries and deaths

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Investigate Midwest is an independent, nonprofit newsroom. Our mission is to serve the public interest by exposing dangerous and costly practices of influential agricultural corporations and institutions through in-depth and data-driven investigative journalism.

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