Coalition of Immokalee Workers

Our trip to the Coalition of Immokalee Workers was a trip that I felt was very close to my heart. As someone who comes from a fully Hispanic family, I can testify that many work for the lowest wages possible. But they do it because they have bills to pay, and mouths to feed; they basically have no other choice. I have many uncles who work in the construction field, and many don't see their paychecks on time because their bosses simply didn't put enough effort to have them done on time.  They work long hours under a the scorching sun; a job that not many would do willingly.  

As the leader of the CIW was giving us the run down of how the workers are paid, more specifically, how little the workers were paid to pick fruits, I started to get immensely sad. There is modern-day slavery happening right under our noses, but we fail to see it. I, like many of my peers, were very shocked to hear what the conditions these farmers are going through in the 21st century, conditions that no human should be working under.  The wages they work for are completely ridiculous. I make more on a 5-hour shift at Charming Charlie, simply by folding some clothes and ringing up people. To me, that is completely ludicrous. So although the Coalition was able to raise the farmers wages through the Fair Food Program, I believe that they still have a really long way to go. No human in the 21st century should be working through such conditions, and I'm genuinely concerned that a topic as important as this one isn't one that isn't being spoken about as much as it should be. I am very happy that the Coalition exists, and that they've battled hard over the years to get where they are, but this issue is something that is going to require nationwide support; it is completely underrepresented. I would also like to point out that the job these farmers do is not appreciated. When we go to Walmart or Publix, we don’t fully realize that those fruits and vegetables didn’t just magically get there. The was a humble man or woman, in a field somewhere in Florida, who under this scorching Florida sun, picked out those oranges from a tree, and that’s why we get to enjoy them. Not everyone would do that job willingly, I know I wouldn’t.  

The field trip to the Coalition was a great example of the importance of Social Sustainability, and how corporations should adhere to the principles of social sustainability in order to maintain a healthy and successful work environment. The companies that the farmers work for have completely disregarded the basic ethics of social sustainability, as well as environmental sustainability with the amount of pesticides that they use in those fields. This field trip definitely gave us all a new insight into the community we thought we knew, and I know it may inspire many to want to support the CIW movement.

https://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2007/09/18/sustainability-workplace