Center for Social Justice Represents New Jersey Farmworkers

Seton Hall School of Law’s Center for Social Justice (CSJ), along with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLUNJ), and the national office of the American Civil Liberties Union, is representing in state court on behalf of El Comité de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Argícolas (CATA). The suit alleges violations of equal protection under the New Jersey State Constitution and seeks injunctive relief and a declaratory judgment. CATA is a grassroots organization that advocates for improvement of working and living conditions amongst farmworkers.

The complaint filed on August 7, in the New Jersey Superior Court for Mercer County alleges that the exclusion of farmworkers from equal wages and overtime protection in the state’s wage and hours laws is discriminatory and violates the New Jersey Constitution. The New Jersey minimum wage is fifteen dollars an hour for most other similarly situated workers, but the law only guarantees farmworkers a minimum wage of twelve dollars an hour with no overtime pay. Under current legislation farm workers won’t reach fifteen dollars an hour until 2027 and won’t reach an equal wage with the rest of New Jersey workers until 2030. If the lawsuit is successful, the Court would strike the exclusion of farm workers from the 2019 wage legislation.

Farm workers have historically been excluded from fair labor laws as far back as the New Deal Era when legislators in Congress refused to protect these individuals for racist reasons. Many states, including New Jersey, then modeled their own wage and hour laws after federal law, further excluding these workers from equal wage protections. CATA has fought legislatively for fair labor protections for farm workers but is now seeking action through the judicial system. There are nearly 10,000 farms in the state of New Jersey generating 1.5 billion dollars for the New Jersey economy. Representatives for CATA assert that equal wages for farm workers will provide the added benefits of improved living conditions, better access to healthcare, more opportunities for education, and a reduction in the risk of injuries and illnesses related to overwork and lack of rest.

The CSJ has previously worked on state constitutional law challenges and frequently collaborates with public interest law offices throughout the state to work on issues of public importance. Director of the Equal Justice Clinic and Professor, Jenny-Brooke Condon emphasized that at the heart of the legal challenge is the reality that farm workers typically don’t have a fair shake in the political process. Farm workers are some of the most vulnerable people in the workforce, she stated.  Most farmworkers in New Jersey are racial and ethnic minorities, many cannot vote in New Jersey elections, and many face language barriers, that along with their geographic isolation because of job requirements, hampers their ability to secure fair treatment. These factors, says Condon, “provide a heightened reason for the court to vindicate the Plaintiff’s rights to equal treatment.”

New Jersey courts have long recognized that the State Constitution provides broader protections than the Federal Constitution.  Additionally, several states have provided equal wages for farm workers in recent years, including New York State through legislative means and Washington State through the judicial process under the Washington State Constitution.

Several teams of CSJ students’ research and other work culminated in the recently filed complaint. Future students enrolled in the CSJ will have the opportunity to work on this case as the challenge continues in court.