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Article: U.S. Cites Ga. Farmer in Migrant Worker Suit; Labor Widens Responsibility for Meeting Wage and Safety Standards
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- November 3, 1994
- Author:
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For years, federal officials bringing legal action to challenge
illegal working conditions for migrant laborers have generally left
alone the farmers on whose land the work takes place. Instead, they
focused on action against the contractors who oversee the workers.
Yesterday, the Department of Labor announced it would take on
the farmers too. It brought a $1.2 million suit against a huge
Georgia onion farm and a labor contractor, saying they shared
responsibility for violations of federal wage and safety laws on the
farm. It is the largest case of its kind ever brought by the Labor
Department.
Labor Secretary Robert B. Reich said the complaint against
Bland Farms of Reidsville, Ga., ...