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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
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Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
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Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Augus 9, 2005
/ 4 Av, 5765
Humane treatment for workers is a tough row to hoe
By
Ruben Navarrette Jr.
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Salud Zamudio-Rodriguez came to the United States from Mexico nearly 25 years ago to do as President Bush likes to say "jobs that Americans won't do."
Some people hate that phrase, angrily insisting that the issue isn't work ethic but wages, and that there is no job that Americans won't do if the price is right.
Is that so? I wonder what the asking price would be to work alongside Zamudio-Rodriguez picking bell peppers near Arvin, in the southern San Joaquin Valley. A crippling a job that requires workers to spend most of the day hunched over, it's grueling and dirty, and it would be tough enough to do in perfect weather, let alone in Central California where summer temperatures soar to 108 degrees. Having come to the United States in 1981 and received his green card, 42-year-old Zamudio-Rodriguez labored for pennies. Farm workers in California usually make minimum wage. Under the state's minimum wage law, which is slightly more generous than the federal law, that pencils out to $6.75 an hour, or $54 for an eight-hour workday.
That's considerably less than the asking price of one of my U.S.-born readers who boasted that he would gladly pick lettuce for $1,000 per week.
Even if a lettuce grower were willing to pay that, he would simply pass that cost onto the customer. And a Cobb salad would be as pricey as caviar.
Of course, Americans won't pay those prices for produce. They'll simply shop for less expensive alternatives, relying on fruits and vegetables imported from foreign countries. That gives farmers little incentive to boost workers' wages.
What farmers and other employers have an incentive to do is bring in more workers. The more workers they have at their disposal, the harder they can push them and the more they can depress wages. That's why management loves the idea of so-called guest workers, a temporary (and thus disposable) work force. Whenever employers get the itch, they turn to Republicans in Congress, with whom they have long had a relationship that resembles the one between the organ grinder and the monkey. The latest members of Congress to monkey around with the idea of establishing a temporary worker program are Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz, and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.
These border-state senators have drafted legislation called the Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act of 2005. The bill is a gift for employers. It establishes a new visa category to allow foreign workers to enter the United States to work temporarily (up to two years). Workers can reapply and participate for a total of six years.
I don't understand why lawmakers insist on catering so much to employers. Especially when human nature tells us that, the easier it is for someone to get something, the less likely he is to take care of it.
No one took care of Salud Zamudio-Rodriguez. According to media reports, on July 13, he tried to keep up when the tractor, which sets the pace of the picking, suddenly sped up on orders from the foreman. Whereas the usual speed allows workers to pick three buckets of bell peppers in 15 minutes, with time for a drink of water, the faster pace required them to pick double that in the same amount of time with no water. Near the end of the day, Zamudio-Rodriguez complained that he wasn't feeling well. Suddenly, he collapsed. An ambulance was called. En route to the hospital, Zamudio-Rodriguez died.
The California Department of Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating, looking for violations of the state health and safety code. The office has plenty to do. There have been five other heat-related deaths of workers in the state in the last few weeks. State lawmakers have proposed a bill that would allow for rest periods and shade to protect farm workers when temperatures get above 95 degrees. Predictably, and shamefully, lawmakers from the Central Valley complain that the requirement puts too great a burden on farmers.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger doesn't seem to care about such burdens. Last week, he announced an emergency order requiring employers to provide a set amount of water and shade for workers who feel the symptoms of heatstroke. Brushing aside the political wrangling, Schwarzenegger said the rules should have been put in place "many, many years ago." He's right.
A lot of Americans probably don't care what happens to people like Salud Zamudio-Rodriguez. But they should at least have the decency not to insult his memory, and those of others, by insisting that people like him are taking jobs that Americans are dying to do.
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