WHy do we still have slavery in the United States .?

Question

In March 2005 the Coalition of Immokalee Workers pressured Yum!, a company selling agricultural goods to businesses such as Taco Bell to increase worker’ wages. Workers were given 40 cents per 32 pound bucket of tomatoes. These wages are the same as they were 30 years ago. Many workers were incarcerated, and beaten. The CIW was able to free 1,000 workers by forcing an increase in wages and rewriting the terms of slavery in Yum!’s supplier code of conduct.

Answer 1

This is not slavery, the people are getting paid, and they can choose to go work for somebody else.

True slavery forces one person to work for the benefit of another and it is mandatory. For example: social security, medicare, medicaid, welfare, prescription drugs, universal health care, etc.

Answer 2

This is not slavery.

Pickers can make pretty good money during the picking season. The work is seasonal and you have to travel to get the work, but, the work really does pay better than it sounds.

A picker can pick about 4000 pounds of tomatoes a day making about 125 bucks. At minimum wage a person works 8 hours and makes less than half of that.

It costs about twenty cents per pound to grow and harvest tomatoes, with picking running at 40 cents per pound.

The bigger problem is that this is back breaking work and the only way a family can make it from one farm to another, and from one season to another, is for the entire family to work. A family of four can earn about $375 a day, picking for a couple of weeks straight with no days off. Sometimes for months straight with no days off.

The kids are treated like slaves, that is true, but not by the farmers.

Harvesting season actually lasts about three months of back breaking labor where people earn between 100 and 150 a day for every day they work. People are paid by the unit so you do not get to loaf on these jobs and if you have ever seen an experienced picker work you know these people are anything but lazy.

In 3 months you make about 12k and then if you are lucky you can find work to last until the next growing season.

This is why so many pickers have some nice things and also live in squalor. You can buy a nice car on a seasons earnings, but, you can't buy a nice house on a seasons earnings.

I would not want to work as a picker again, but, I cannot say it is slavery. heck, I sucked at it when I tried it.

Answer 3

I had not heard of this before. I decided to google it and here's a link. I have not read it completely, but there have apparently been some DOJ prosecutions. For the sake of accuracy, though, Yum does not employ these workers. The independent growers do. Yum agreed to pay more for the product and apparently the growers agreed to let the increase pass through to the workers.
http://www.ciw-online.org/slavery.html

Answer 4

because "stoop" labor jobs don't pay a living wage and those who work such jobs are those who come to this country looking for a better way of living. After Cesar Chavez died there has been no one to take up the fight for better wages for farm workers [Americans refuse to pay for vegetables that cost more than a dollar.

Answer 5

OMG I used to work for that company...but it was in another country. They were still treated like slaves though. Glad I left.

Answer 6

We have both indentured servitude and real slavery in terms of domestic workers and sex workers. Unfortunately that is what happens when profit takes precedence over people.

Answer 7

Because still want to come here illegally instead of coming here in accordance with the law so they would have a legal lege to stand on at least, and eventually rights as citizens.

Answer 8

Cheap labor. Plus some people don't want to raise their own kids.

Answer 9

Wow! Taco Bell treats rats better than it treats people!

Answer 10

Stockholders need more money...if they paid higher wages, someone might have to give something up.