Borderlands Produce Workers Coalition

Borderlands Produce Workers Coalition
Name	Borderlands Produce Workers Coalition
Formation	2018
Type	Worker-led advocacy group
Region	U.S.–Mexico borderlands
Headquarters	Nogales, Arizona
Membership	Agricultural and packinghouse workers
Key people	Rosa Martínez; Daniel Ortega; María López

Borderlands Produce Workers Coalition

The Borderlands Produce Workers Coalition is a worker-led advocacy group representing agricultural harvesters, packinghouse employees, and migrant laborers active across the U.S.–Mexico border region. Founded amid organizing efforts in the late 2010s, the coalition has coordinated cross-border campaigns, strikes, and legal challenges involving prominent unions, community organizations, and civil rights groups. It operates at the intersection of labor rights, immigration policy, and transnational supply-chain scrutiny, engaging with local municipalities, regional unions, and national advocacy networks.

History

The coalition emerged after a series of walkouts and workplace actions linked to disputes at packinghouses near Nogales and Yuma that drew attention from United Farm Workers, Amalgamated Transit Union, Service Employees International Union, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, and local chapters of Farmworker Justice. Early collaborations involved nonprofit partners such as American Civil Liberties Union, Human Rights Watch, Southern Poverty Law Center, and regional community groups like Borderlinks and No More Deaths. High-profile incidents that catalyzed formation included protests contemporaneous with the 2018 United States midterm elections and connected to campaigns around the Migration Policy Institute research on seasonal migration. The coalition grew by networking with activists from Coalition of Immokalee Workers actions, solidarity visits from members of United Brotherhood of Carpenters, and academic allies at University of Arizona and Arizona State University. Over time it expanded coordination with Mexican labor advocates linked to Sindicato de Jornaleros Agrícolas affiliates and transnational non-governmental organizations such as Centro de los Derechos del Migrante.

Organization and Leadership

The coalition is structured as a federated network combining workplace committees, community defense groups, and legal working groups with rotating leadership drawn from rank-and-file organizers. Core leadership includes veteran labor organizers with histories in United Farm Workers campaigns and immigrant-rights leaders who previously worked with Raices and Movimiento Cosecha. Advisory support has come from prominent labor lawyers tied to National Employment Law Project and human-rights attorneys associated with American Immigration Council. Its internal committees coordinate with municipal officials in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, state legislators in Arizona Legislature and advocacy coalitions in Sonora, Mexico. Strategic decisions are informed by research from think tanks such as Economic Policy Institute and field reports shared with journalists at outlets including The New York Times, The Guardian, and ProPublica.

Campaigns and Activities

Campaign tactics have included coordinated strikes, consumer-facing boycotts, worker-led audits, and community assembly actions modeled on historic campaigns by United Farm Workers and Coalition of Immokalee Workers. The coalition organized high-visibility protests at corporate locations linked to produce supply chains involving companies formerly targeted by Do Not Buy campaigns and worked with grocery chains and food distributors such as Walmart, Kroger, and Costco to press for accountability. It has executed cross-border caravans, legal aid clinics with International Rescue Committee, and public hearings with officials from U.S. Department of Labor and Mexican labor authorities in Guadalajara and Hermosillo. Media outreach efforts involved collaborations with documentary filmmakers linked to Independent Lens and investigative partnerships with reporters at Los Angeles Times and Reuters.

Labor Issues and Demands

Central demands include living wages anchored to wage-setting research from Economic Policy Institute, improved workplace safety standards consistent with Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidance, anti-discrimination protections reinforced by litigation strategies used by ACLU affiliates, and regularization pathways reflecting policy proposals debated at the U.S. Congress and advocated by National Immigration Forum. The coalition has pushed for collective bargaining recognition modeled after agreements involving United Food and Commercial Workers International Union and campaign-specific protections inspired by victories secured by Coalition of Immokalee Workers in the tomato industry. Additional demands targeted employer practices flagged by Human Rights Watch reports, calling for transparent hiring, remediation funds, and cross-border social protections tied to initiatives from International Labour Organization offices in Latin America.

Legal Actions and Government Relations

The coalition has filed strategic complaints with agencies including U.S. Department of Labor, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Mexican labor tribunals, often collaborating with attorneys from National Employment Law Project and Centro de los Derechos del Migrante. It pursued litigation invoking statutory frameworks shaped by precedent from cases litigated by Southern Poverty Law Center and amicus briefs from civil-rights organizations such as Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. The group has lobbied state lawmakers in Arizona Legislature and municipal councils in Nogales, Arizona for ordinances on labor contracting transparency, while engaging diplomatic advocacy with consular officials from Mexico and coordination with binational labor initiatives promoted by U.S. Department of State human-rights desks.

Impact and Reception

The coalition’s actions have prompted corporate supply-chain audits, negotiation of workplace accords in select packinghouses, and policy debates in state capitols and federal hearings attended by members of U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate committees on labor and agriculture. Supporters include faith-based networks tied to Catholic Charities USA and student groups from University of Arizona and Arizona State University, while critics have ranged from industry associations such as the National Council of Agricultural Employers to local chambers of commerce. Coverage by outlets including The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and investigative platforms like ProPublica has amplified both worker testimonies and employer responses, contributing to broader discussions on labor rights in North American food systems.

Category:Labor organizations