. . . and California Workers

Contamination of part of California’s watermelon crop this summer by the pesticide aldicarb brought home to people across the state one peril that agricultural workers face every day: Pesticides can cause illness or skin rashes and blisters or worse. Workers need better protection from potentially hazardous exposure.

California regulations now direct growers to post signs in their fields whenever dangerous pesticides are used. But the growers have to put up the signs only if the pesticides are likely to be dangerous for more than seven days. Legislation sponsored by Sen. Nicholas C. Petris (D-Oakland) would require warning signs for labor-intensive crops if the danger period is one day or longer. Monterey County already has such a requirement.

Farm workers now are exempt from state law requiring employers to tell employees about any toxic hazards that they might face in the workplace. Petris’ bill would require growers to post the spraying notices in order to keep that exemption.

Some growers argue that the state need only increase the penalties for knowingly sending workers into contaminated fields. But this bill is aimed more at prevention of illnesses from accidental exposure than at punishment. The measure (SB 269) has passed the Senate and will come up today in the Assembly Agriculture Committee. It would provides information that workers and supervisors alike need to know.