County to Seek Federal Aid for Fieldworkers

County officials Tuesday decided to pursue federal aid for local fieldworkers left jobless after the pre-Christmas freeze.

The decision came hours after Supervisor John Flynn lashed out at county emergency services officials for suggesting that farm workers’ job losses were not severe enough during the cold spell to warrant federal emergency aid.

Flynn urged officials at the sheriff’s office of emergency services to reconsider the position, and ordered a more thorough study on the adverse effects of the freeze on the county’s roughly 20,000 farm workers.

Late last month, Ventura and 17 other counties were declared federal disaster areas, opening the door for farmers who sustained heavy losses to apply for low-interest loans. Farm workers should be given the same opportunity, Flynn said.

“We’ve got to be sensitive about the fact that some farm workers have been hit pretty hard,” Flynn said.

Shortly after Flynn made those comments, the Clinton administration declared six counties--Fresno, Madera, Tulare, Kern, King and Monterey--federal disaster areas, paving the way for field workers to receive federal aid.

Ventura County will apply for a similar proclamation as early as today, said Laura Hernandez, assistant director of the office of emergency services. The county must apply to the state office of emergency services.