North country officials decry Farm Labor Wage Board's recommendation to lower worker overtime threshold

Sep. 8—The Farm Laborers Wage Board on Tuesday released a report calling for the reduction of the overtime threshold for farm workers to 40 hours per week, sparking unified backlash from the north country's elected officials and candidates.

Democrats and Republicans representing Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties all agreed that the wage board's recommendation that farm laborers start earning overtime pay, at least their hourly rate plus 50%, once they've started working their 41st hour in a week is a poor decision that will hurt workers and farm owners.

For now, farm laborers start overtime pay once they've worked 60 hours in a week. Farm laborers frequently work closer to 60 hours in a week during the planting and harvesting seasons, and lowering the threshold for when overtime pay starts is likely to increase labor costs for farmers dramatically during those times. The change has not been put into effect yet, and requires approval from the state's Department of Labor commissioner.

When the decision was announced, Congresswomen Elise M. Stefanik, R-Schuylerville, and Claudia L. Tenney, R-New Hartford, both released statements blasting the wage board's decision.

"These Democrats in Albany are doubling down on their reckless overtime decision, jeopardizing New York's agriculture industry, putting thousands of farm laborers out of work, and making New York less competitive by forcing our workers to seek labor opportunities in neighboring states, all while in the midst of a labor shortage," Rep. Stefanik said.

The congresswoman also pledged to fight the wage board's decision.

Congresswoman Tenney said she is very concerned by the potential impacts of the decision, and cited Cornell University data that indicates it could lead to job cuts in the state's agriculture sector.

"Cornell University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences projected that this rule's implementation could force two-thirds of dairy farmers to make significant changes such as leaving the industry or investing in other states, and half of fruit and vegetable farmers to reduce their operations or leave the industry altogether," she said.

The congresswomen's Democratic challengers, Matt Castelli for Rep. Stefanik and Steven W. Holden, Sr. for Rep. Tenney, both also disagreed with the farm wage labor board's decisions, but in much less bombastic ways.

Mr. Castelli said the proposed new rules by the wage board don't seem to account for the seasonal, weather-related nature of agricultural work, and said the already high level of governmental interference in the agricultural sector makes this an even more difficult change to handle.

"In an industry where the government already controls and limits profit margins, these rules only serve to hurt New York farmers who are already having trouble finding a ready workforce, and farm workers who will no longer be able to work the hours they choose," he said.

Mr. Castelli suggested that Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul's team reject these suggestions of the wage board and instead pass laws empowering farm laborers to negotiate work conditions, hours and pay with their bosses.

Mr. Holden said the wage board should at least consider a seasonal overtime threshold, rather than a weekly threshold.

"Those hours need to be spread out over harvest season, and aggregated," Mr. Holden said. "The bill was written without a full understanding of how agricultural operations work."

The north country's state officials, all Republicans, were similarly critical of the wage board's decision. Assemblyman Mark C. Walczyk, R-Watertown, who represents the old 116th Assembly District but is running to represent a newly-drawn state Senate district in Jefferson, Lewis and Oswego counties, said the decision to implement a 40-hour standard work week for the agricultural sector in New York demonstrates a lack of understanding in Albany.

"Simply put, this recommendation will put more farms into bankruptcy and foreclosure, and put farm workers out of jobs," he said. "If Albany wants to tell the rest of the world that New York is closed for business, they are certainly doing a great job at that. However, with the landscape and security of our food chain at stake, this issue is more than jobs and economics. It's literally the food we all put on our tables."

Scott A. Gray, a Jefferson County legislator and the Republican candidate for the new 116th Assembly District, said the north country relies heavily on a strong agricultural economy, and suggested that wages for the state's agricultural sector might be set by a regional, multi-state commission instead of a state board.

"New York agriculture will be at a considerable disadvantage with nearby states so it makes sense for wage and hour policy determinations to be set on a broader scale, versus being set at the state level," he said. "The decision in New York state will hurt our farms, our farm workers, agri-businessses and our rural economy."

Susan L. Duffy, a St. Lawrence County businesswoman and Conservative candidate for the 116th Assembly District, said the decision will pose problems for farm owners and workers alike, and said this seems to come in a line of attacks from state officials on local businesses and workers.

"These are seasonal jobs where workers come from all over with an expectation of a minimum number of hours to work," she said. "If they can't get the hours they need here, the will simply go to states that do not have the onerous regulations forced on them like we have in NY. My understanding is that funding help is already difficult for farmers and communities."

Assemblyman Kenneth D. Blankenbush, R-Black River, who represents the 117th Assembly District and is running for a roughly-equal district, released a column heavily criticizing the decision of the wage board. He echoed many of his Republican colleagues concerns, and said that the wage board seems to have ignored the public input they solicited for.

"Join me, my colleagues, members of the Farm Bureau, farmworkers and farmers who are calling on them to reject the lowering of the overtime threshold," he said. "Remind them of the financial implications this would have on both farmers and the consumer. If we continue to bite the hand that feeds us, we will lose our agricultural industry entirely."

Sen. Patricia A. Ritchie, R-Heuvelton, who represents Jefferson, Oswego and part of St. Lawrence counties in the state Senate, said there are a lot of very valid concerns about the wage board's decision, and she's heard much advocacy against this possibility for months now.

"Like many others, I am deeply concerned about the far-reaching, disastrous effects this decision will have on farms across the state that are already struggling, as well as our farm workers and consumers who rely on the foods they grow and produce," she said. "Simply put, this decision threatens the future of New York's agriculture industry and should be seriously reconsidered."