BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) – Republicans in the New York state senate are pushing for a delay in the ability for a state Wage board to evaluate lowering the overtime threshold for farmers and farm workers below 60 hours per week.
Among the reasons they are arguing for this is because of the pandemic’s impact on the financial situation for farms across the state.
The wage board is a provision of the Farm Laborers Fair Practice Act, a 2019 law that took effect at the start of this year. It gives farmworkers, including those working with a visa, the right to be paid time-and-a-half for hours worked over 60 hours in a single week.
Republicans introduced a bill which delays the wage board from issuing its report for farms until 2024. It will require yearly public meetings, consultations with farmers, and to consider laborer and overtime rates in neighboring states.
The bill is sponsored by State Senator George Borrello, whose district encompasses much of Chautauqua County.
“We have over 55,000 people that are employed in agriculture in New York State,” Borrello said. “That is a business that provides over $45 billion in economic impact in New York State. This is an important business that we have to consider.”
Borrello argued that farmers and farm workers do not work a traditional 9-to-5 job.
“This law created a wage board that has already considered lowering the threshold even further before we even have any reliable data on the financial impact of this law,” Borrello said. “Farmers are still adapting to the overtime mandate and absorbing other disruptions including the increases to minimum wage and changes to the federal guest worker program as well as unforeseen challenges including this pandemic.”
Borrello argued that lowering the overtime threshold could force family farms to shut down.
Dozens of farmers spoke at the wage board’s hearing on Monday afternoon. Due to the dozens of farmers who testified during Monday's hearing, board chair Brenda McDuffie said there will be another hearing at the end of September.
By law, there must be a report by the end of this year. McDuffie encouraged written testimony through the end of October.