April 1, 2010

Forklift "Train the Trainer" Safety Classes

The Nisei Farmers League is pleased to partner with the agricultural associations, insurance agencies, and Cal/OSHA Consultation to provide these safety training classes. Please see the flyer here.

March 16, 2010

Heat Illness Classes

The following free heat illness prevention training classes for growers, farm labor contractors, and their supervisors have been announced.

It's that time of the year again, when the weather heats up and the shade tents need to be up. Once again, the Nisei Farmers League is partnering with many agricultural organizations, the Department of Industrial Relations, and Cal/OSHA to help train growers, farm labor contractors, and supervisors about the heat illness regulation and how to avoid getting a citation. The kick-off training will take place at CPDES Hall, 172 W. Jefferson, Fresno, CA 93706 on March 30, 2010 with Spanish training at 1 pm and English training at 3 pm. We cannot encourage your participation strongly enough. It is very important that you attend this training along with your supervisors. Last year, nearly 2,000 folks employing over 300,000 people attended the training sessions and we hope to have just as successful of a program this year. Please call the office if you have any questions.

March 1, 2010

Truck Rule - Agricultural Truck Reporting

Those of you that have been following the newsletter and the progress of the ARB Truck Rule know that March 31, 2010 is the date by which you will have to have agricultural trucks registered. If you haven't been following, you need to get your trucks reported under the agricultural provisions so that you do not fall under the same provisions as long-haul and commercial haulers. Ag Trucks include vehicles like: water trucks, trucks that haul from farm to first processor, and manure spreaders, among others. Here is the web site that you can go to to pull up the forms: www.arb.ca.gov/dieseltruck , when the web site comes up, the fifth button will say “Reporting Forms.” Fill out the information and send into ARB quickly to ensure you qualify under the ag specialty provisions. If you cannot access the forms via the web site, please contact the office. We will have printed copies here and can help walk you through the form.

February 1, 2010

Log 300 Posting

Employers are reminded to post the OSHA Log 300 summary sheet starting February 1. The summary sheet must be posted until April 30.Employers can post this document on their clipboards or other locations that workers visit daily.

December 16, 2009

AB 650 Earned Income Tax Credit Notification

As of January 1, 2008, California employers who are required to provide unemployment insurance must also notify all employees that they may be eligible for the Federal Earned Income Tax Credit within one week (before or after) of the time the employers provides a Form W-2 or Form 1099. A sample notification is available in the Grower Documents portion of the Members section of our website.

November 23, 2009

Tractor Surveys

Growers will be receiving surveys by email and in hard copy formats asking for information about their farm equipment. It is very important to fill out and return these surveys so that we have accurate information in discussions with the California Air Resources Board over the upcoming Tractor Rule. Your personal information will remain confidential and will not be turned over to CARB. The data will be aggregated by Fresno State before if goes to the agency. Please return the filled-out survey to the Nisei Farmers League or the agricultural group from which you received the survey. Please only fill out one survey if you belong to multiple associations. The deadline to turn in the survey has been extended, so please send back your survey ASAP.

October 6, 2009

New I-9

Please be advised that there is a new Form I-9 with an expiration date of 8/31/12. The link to this document is found in the Members section of the web site under Grower Documents.

July 15, 2009

Green Binder Online

Members will be pleased to know that the Agricultural Regulations Manual, or Green Binder, is now available online in the Members section. If you have any questions about how to utilize this manual, please call the office.

June 3, 2009

Heat Illness Igloos and Stickers

We are pleased to announce the new Igloo Corporation "Heat Illness" water can is available for sale from the retailers listed here. You can see what the Igloos look like by clicking here. We also carry heavy-duty stickers that you can place on your existing water containers and have the same language. The cost of these stickers is $2 and they can be ordered through our office.

April 15, 2009

Heat Illness Prevention

Be sure to follow the four aspects of Regulation 3395: provide water, provide shade, provide training, and develop written procedures. Members can find sample written procedures in the Grower Documents portion of the Members section of our web site. Please also review Cal/OSHA's Q&A document.

September 9, 2008

Raisin Tray Burning

With harvest season upon us, we feel that it is prudent to remind our growers of the rules regarding the burning of raising trays. Please follow this link to see the Air Pollution Control District's rules. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call us.

June 9, 2008

Heat Stress

Please make every effort to make sure that your employees are properly trained with regards to Heat Stress. Heat Stress plans need to be incorporated into your IIPPs as well. Remember, workers must have access to cool, clean water and must have access to shade.  You must also train them with regards to preventing heat illness and you must have a written program. This is one of the major issues that OSHA will be addressing this summer, so please plan accordingly. Heat prevention plans can be found here.  Our members can also obtain written procedures custom-tailored for agriculture here at our office.

January 3, 2008

Ag Burn Rule Variance

On December 27, 2007 the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control Districts Variance Board granted a short 90-day period to allow those growers who would not be able chip their trees in time to replant new ones this season to burn them. The variance was granted because it has been shown that the bio-mass facilities in the area who typically take the majority of chipped material, are either at full capacity or were shut down because of maintenance. Because bio-mass facilities cannot take the chipped material, the Ag contractors who do the chipping have not been able to keep up with the volume of acreage that needs to be chipped.

The burn variance only applies to those who have removed over 20 acres, and are planning to replant this season. Those who apply for the variance will still have to show some proof that they tried to get a contractor to chip their material and have a valid burn permit, for all the details you can look at this one page fact sheet HERE.  For those who are removing under 20 acres, you can still apply to burn by using this application HERE.

August 24, 2007

Support AgJOBS

After receiving a number of inquiries from our members and others asking how they can support AgJOBS, we have decided to provide a letter supporting AgJOBS that can be sent to their Senators, Representatives whomever else they believe should be informed about the bill.

In light of the new DHS rules regarding illegal workers and social security "no-match" letters, AgJOBS is needed now more than ever. Please feel free to pass the letters on to neighbors, family members, friends, and business associates. The more unified our voice is about AgJOBS the better chance we have at passing.

The letter, one addressing US Senators and the other House of Representatives can be found here (AgJOBS Letter). A list of names and addresses who we suggest sending the letters to can be found here (Address List). Be sure to address the letters to the appropriate people and sign with your name.