Migrant workers in Southwest Florida face fear with storm

“”There’s nowhere to go, and we have no means to go, anyway; we have nothing,” said Pedro Andres, 30, a yard worker from Guatemala. “We have our lives, that is all.”

Besides coinciding with their return, Wilma comes at a particularly lean time for illegal workers, mostly Guatemalans, Mexicans and Haitians, who occupy the lowermost rungs of the agriculture industry here. October is traditionally slow. The farming season has yet to kick off, and many tomato and potato field workers are working one or two days a week, if that. Tomato pickers, whose hands are stained a telltale orange, earn about $45 a day, and some don’t have the money to eat, and certainly not enough to buy extra water or canned food.”

Please note some (many) sites require registration. Many times it is free.

Stumble it! | |

Other posts that may interest you

Canada hopes media blitz will curb arrivals of illegal immigrants from SW Florida

Dominican Republic rich climate for Southwest Florida businesses

Migrant Workers to Get Overtime for Storm Cleanup, Ending Suit - Lousiana

Voices of a New Movimiento

Local advocate for migrant workers retires

Language barriers, fears pose more obstacles for victims

McDonalds to pay more for salad tomatoes (to help migrant workers in Florida)

HIV rate of Mexican migrant workers on the rise. California

Cluster clinics help migrant workers stay healthy in Minnesota

Well be looking at immigration issue in months ahead - Chambersburg, Pennsylvania