CONTENTS
| "RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company certainly supports safe and fair conditions for any worker in any industry."
- David Howard, RJ Reynolds Spokesman Quoted in the News-Observer, Raleigh NC, Oct. 27 2007 1 |
Each year, tens of thousands of farmworkers enter North Carolina in the spring to begin preparing the fields and planting tobacco. Most of the workers are migrant workers from Mexico traveling year after year away from their families to drive the tobacco economy of North Carolina, in collaboration with many growers around the state.
The news over the last few years has been full of stories of the tobacco economy taking a major hit with decreases in domestic smoking and the tobacco settlement. Tobacco companies plead a sad case of economic hardship due to paying billions of dollars to settle the court cases regarding the health issues associated with smoking. They claim the industry is hurting even further because smoking is decreasing here in the US. This story of an industry under attack is what the cigarette companies like Reynolds Tobacco want you to believe.
What is wrong with this picture?
While domestic tobacco growers feel the squeeze from the changing domestic industry, and workers continue to work in poverty conditions without basic labor and health protections, cigarette companies’ profits are increasing. 2
Company profits UP, Growers’ incomes DOWN
Tobacco Company profits are up due to international sales. However, prices growers receive for their crop are down when adjusted for inflation. US growers previously received seven cents of every dollar spent on cigarettes in the United States. Now growers receive two cents or less. Since 1980, the prices charged for cigarettes have gone up 270%, three times the general rate of inflation. Prices paid for tobacco, however, have increased only 14-19%, far less than the inflation rate. In the meantime, the inflation adjusted costs of farming have gone up almost 200%. The profit margin for small tobacco farmers gets ever thinner. 2
While the billion-dollar tobacco companies are getting richer due to international sales, growers and workers end up fighting over a smaller and smaller piece of the pie. The squeeze is on those at the bottom of the supply chain.
CHART- DISTRIBUTION OF DOLLARS SPENT ON TOBACCO PRODUCTS
DATA FROM 1998
The tobacco buyout: Growers against the ropes
For decades a quota system existed to stabilize prices for growers and avoid the uncertainty of price fluctuations. Paying only the administrative costs, the government provided quotas to growers to control the amount of tobacco each grower could plant. Growers then sold their tobacco to growers’ cooperatives, which would sell to the cigarette companies. This stabilized prices and created a level of protection between the billion-dollar companies and the small farmers. 2
In 1998 the federal government began enacting the tobacco buyout to eliminate this quota system. The government paid growers for their quotas and released tobacco back to an unregulated market--an oligopoly controlled by a few multibillion dollar companies, including Reynolds Tobacco. Growers now contract directly with one of only a few cigarette companies who are free to dictate prices. Growers are against the ropes with little capacity to improve conditions for workers. 2
What’s Needed?
Neither workers nor growers can see a substantial change in their conditions if they are fighting over a shrinking piece of the economic pie. Reynolds Tobacco must get involved. Reynolds must sit down with workers and growers, and share some of their record profits to improve the conditions of those laboring to supply the tobacco they make billions selling.
North Carolina ranks sixth in the nation in the number of migrant farmworkers. 3 In the United States, there are two to three million farmworkers nationwide. 4 Most farmworkers are exempt from minimum wage laws, and all are exempt from overtime provisions, despite long work days during peak harvest. 5 Despite pervasive poverty, less than one percent of farmworkers collect general assistance welfare nationwide. 6 Only ten percent of farmworkers report having health insurance through an employer health plan. 6 In North Carolina, very few farmworkers are covered by workers compensation. Only farmers employing ten or more year-round workers or any H2A worker are required to carry workers compensation insurance. 7 Barriers to receiving health care include lack of transportation, limited hours of clinic operation, cost of health care, limited interpreter services, and frequent relocation in order to seek farm work. 8 | In North Carolina hundreds of thousands of farmworkers work in conditions more dangerous than almost any other work. Farmworkers have little or no access to basic health services. Even fewer farmworkers have health insurance or even workers compensation insurance. Therefore, many of the workplace injuries or illness are made much more serious due to difficulties in finding treatment. 9 In addition to serious injuries and illnesses that affect farmworkers, there are many daily ailments that they face, especially those who labor in the tobacco fields. Common afflictions include nausea, vomiting, headache, dizziness, abdominal pain and cramps, and difficulty breathing. Due to the heat and chemicals, workers can often become severely dehydrated. 10
|
WHAT IF ALMOST EVERYTHING
THAT YOU USED AT WORK
WAS COVERED IN TOXIC CHEMICALS?
Each year, tens of thousands of farmworkers suffer from overexposure to toxic chemicals while harvesting tobacco. The most common illness is Green Tobacco Sickness, or GTS. This is caused by a dermal absorption of nicotine, found naturally in tobacco plants, that workers come in contact with while cutting and carrying tobacco. 10
Studies show that almost one-fourth of all tobacco farmworkers suffer from Green Tobacco Sickness each year. While there have not been sufficient studies on long-term effects, the short-term effects can put workers at greater risk for more serious heath problems such as heat stroke, which can be fatal. 11
IF THE LOW MIGRANT HOUSING STANDARDS WERE USED,
81 WORKERS COULD LIVE IN THIS HOUSE. 12
This home, valued at $2,645,653, was owned by a Reynolds Executive. 13
This home is located in the Reynolda Historic District, known as the “old money” neighborhood in Winston-Salem which emerged when the R. J. Reynolds family settled there. 14 The Reynolda District emerged due to the tremendous wealth of the Reynolds Family.
Characteristics of housing owned by Reynolds Executives 13
Farmworker housing in North Carolina
Housing problems that farmworkers face include overcrowding, unsafe structures, poor sanitation, proximity to pesticides and lack of inspection and enforcement. During a survey of farmworker housing on the East Coast conducted by the Housing Assistance Council, researchers found 38 percent severely inadequate or unfit for human habitation. 15
Characteristics of North Carolina Migrant Housing Where Official Standards Apply 16
AVERAGE ANNUAL INCOME
FOR A FARMWORKER IN NORTH CAROLINA
is $7,1501 17
THAT’S ALMOST 3 TIMES LESS THAN THE FEDERAL POVERTY LEVEL FOR A FAMILY OF FOUR 18
COMPENSATION FOR REYNOLDS MANAGEMENT 19
| SUSAN IVEY
| PRESIDENT AND CEO REYNOLDS AMERICAN JEFFERY ECKMANN
| PRESIDENT RAI GROUP DANIEL DELEN
| PRESIDENT AND CEO RJR TOBACCO DIANE NEAL
| EXECUTIVE VP AND CFO REYNOLDS AMERICAN TOMMY PAYNE
| EXECUTIVE VP PUBLIC AFFAIRS REYNOLDS AMERICAN |
FARMWORKER COMPENSATION
"IVEY RECEIVED NEARLY $1.2 MILLION IN SALARY,
UP $55,350 FROM LAST YEAR" 22
"THE TOTAL COMPENSATION PACAGE FOR IVEY WAS LISTED AT 9.5 MILLION" 22
WHILE REYNOLDS EXECUTIVES MAKE MILLIONS,
TOBACCO FARMWORKERS LIVE IN EXTREME POVERTY.
(Note: According to Forbes, Ivey’s compensation increase from 2007 to 2008 was 24%, contrary to the Winston-Salem Journal’s printing of 42%. 23)
MORE THAN 62 MILLION POUNDS OF PESTICIDES
ARE APPLIED ON AGRICULTURAL CROPS
EACH YEAR IN NORTH CAROLINA. 24
| REALITIES FOR FARMWORKERS
| |
 | FAMILIES AT RISK
|
I never thought I would work in the U.S. and even less did I think I would ever work in tobacco. Even more, I never imagined what surprises life would bring me. In 1990 my first son was born with a heart murmur, which was made worse by acute bronchitis. This sickness needed immediate medical attention and would continue to for eight long years after his birth. My staggering economic situation in 1991 pushed me to leave my home in Mexico to work in the tobacco fields of Virginia and North Carolina.
During the entire time I labored in the fields of tobacco, I noticed something; the work contract and regulations of farm work did not coincide with what was actually happening in the fields.
| "My staggering economic situation in 1991 pushed me to leave Mexico to work in the tobacco fields of Virginia and North Carolina." |
We would work without the appropriate equipment or clothes. The irrigation of the fertilizer was done entirely by hand and you were not given gloves of any kind. When we became ill with tobacco sickness, we wouldn’t receive the necessary medical attention and when we continued to be sick, we couldn’t work for one to three weeks. We never received any compensation. Many times we were never taken to a clinic or a doctor.
In the application of pesticides and fertilizer, there are many inconsistencies with the information that is given to workers and what actually occurs in the fields. Many times, due to the workload, the grower cannot wait the necessary time stated by the law to send workers into the fields after the application of pesticides. Sometimes we are not given the necessary equipment to work with the pesticides.
| "They say that green tobacco sickness is temporary, but many of us feel that it is not... I know this because I have lived this experience personally." |
It is said that green tobacco sickness is temporary, but many of us feel that it is not. Many of us, after working for many years in tobacco, have blood work done and find that we have high blood cholesterol and triglycerides. We are often told that green tobacco sickness has nothing to do with it. However, if an analysis is done of our blood, saliva, urine, and other bodily fluids, the diagnosis would be without a doubt nicotine intoxication. I know all of this because I have lived this experience personally.
Thank God that today all of my family is well. My son Luis Alberto had an operation in 1997 at the Ignacio Chavez National Institute of Cardiology in Mexico City and had great results from the procedure. Right now, he is studying to be an electrician at a technical college. I have two other daughters that also are in school, Jacqueline is studying business administration and Paola Dominique is studying secretarial skills.
We migrant workers only come to the United States to work in order to give our families a better life and sufficient nourishment. We do this so that our children will be able to get an education, prepare for life and have money to pay for medical services in order to save the lives of our loved ones who are ill.
1 Collins, Kristin. "Farm Union Targets RJR." The News-Observer (Raleigh, NC) 27 Oct. 2007, sec. B: 1.
2 Lindblom E. American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. False Friends, The U.S. Cigarette Companies’ Betrayal of American Tobacco Farmers Chap. 3,5. December, 1999.
3 Larson A. Farmworker Enumeration Study. 2000.
4 Report of the Commission on Agricultural Workers. Washington, DC. November 1992.
5 United States Congress. Fair Labor Standards Act. 1938. 28 Mar. 2008
6 United States Department of Labor. National Agricultural Workers Survey. 2005.
7 United States Congress. Workers' Compensation Act. 714 Cong., 4 sess. 1979. Mar. 2008.
8 National Association of Community Health Centers, Inc. Medical and Migrant Farmworker Families: Analysis of Barriers and Recommendations for Change. Washington, DC. National Association of Community Health Centers, Inc. July 1991.
9 Facts About North Carolina Farmworkers. Factsheet. North Carolina Farmworker Institute. 2007.
10 Quandt SA, Arcury TA, Preisser J, Norton D, Austin CK. Migrant farmworkers and green tobacco sickness: new issues for an understudied disease. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 37: 307-315, 2000.
11 Arcury TA, Quandt SA, Preisser JS, and Norton D. The incidence of green tobacco sickness among Latino farmworkers. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 43(7):601-609, 2001.
12 North Carolina Agricultural Safety and Health Bureau, Division of Occupational Safety and Health, Department of Labor. Introduction to Migrant Housing Inspections in North Carolina. Jan. 2008.
13 Forsyth County North Carolina. Tax Administration. Online Property Record Card. 19 Apr. 2008.
14 "Buena Vista/Reynolda Historic District." Visit NC. 2008. 23 Apr. 2008.
15 "Migrant Housing Proposal." National Farm Worker Ministry. 2007. 19 Apr. 2008.
16 North Carolina. Agricultural Safety and Health Bureau Division of Occupational Safety and Health. Department of Labor. Introduction to Migrant Housing Inspections in North Carolina. Jan. 2008.
17 United States Department of Labor. National Agricultural Workers Survey. 2005 Ward, L. Analysis of National Agricultural Workers Survey. 2003.
18 Leavitt, Michael O. United States. Office of the Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services. Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines. 23 Jan. 2008. 22 Apr. 2008.
19 United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Schedule 14A Information. 24 Mar. 2008. 24 Mar. 2008.
20 National Center for Farmworker Health.
21 Quandt, S. et al. Public Health Reports. 2006.
22 Carver, Richard. "Ivey Gets 42% Raise." Winston-Salem Journal 25 Mar. 2008, sec. B: 6
23 Thompson Financial News. "Reynolds' CEO Got $7.9 in 2007." Forbes 24 Mar. 2008. 28 Mar. 2008 24 "Farmworkers and Pesticides in North Carolina." From the Ground Up. Summer 2007. Student Action with Farmworkers. 18 Apr. 2008 25 Arcury TA, Grzywacz JG, Davis SW, Barr DB, Quandt SA. Organophosphorus Pesticide Urinary Metabolite Levels of Children in Farmworker Households in Eastern North Carolina. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 49:751-760, 2006.
26 North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Migrant Housing Act. 91 Cong., 2 sess. 1989. 30 Mar. 2008.
27 Arcury TA, Vallejos QM, Marín AJ, Feldman SR, Smith G, Quandt SA. Latino Farmworker Perceptions of the Risk Factors for Occupational Skin Disease. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 49:434-442, 2006.
28 Villarejo D., Baron, SL. The Occupational Health Status of Hired Farmworkers. Occupational Medicine: State of the Art Reviews, 14. 1999.
29 Krejci-Manwaring J, Schultz MR, Feldman SR, Vallejos QM, Quandt SA, Rapp SR, Arcury TA. Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health 12(2): 155-163. 2006.
© 2008 Campaign for Migrant Worker Justice
