Celebrate Farmworkers Awareness Week with CAMP
March 25, 2025 - Dorene DiNaro
This week, the UNM College Assistant Migrant Program joins the national movement in celebrating Farmworker Awareness Week—both across the country and right here at UNM.
Here are some important facts you should know:
• Farmworkers feed the world.
Roughly 85% of our fresh fruits and vegetables are handpicked by an estimated 2.5–3 million men, women, and children working in U.S. fields. Farmworkers labor in every state—including New Mexico—yet remain largely invisible. Many still endure inhumane conditions.
We demand dignity for farmworkers!
• Farm work is dangerous.
It’s one of the most hazardous jobs in the U.S. Farmworkers suffer the highest rate of toxic chemical injuries and face greater risks of heat stress, dermatitis, UTIs, parasitic infections, and tuberculosis than other workers.
We demand safe working conditions!
• Farmworkers are denied equal protection under the law.
Unlike other labor sectors, farmworkers were excluded from many key federal protections passed in the 1930s. To this day, they are not guaranteed overtime pay, unemployment insurance, or the right to unionize. The Fair Labor Standards Act mandates minimum wage only for large farms—and still ignores overtime.
We demand fair treatment and just working conditions for all farmworkers! Visit the National Farmworkers Awareness site for all the details.
📣 Want to get involved?
Check out posts this week from UNM HEP & CAMP, UNM RSP, Chicana/o Studies, and El Centro de la Razaon social media.
🌱 Join us this Wednesday for food, activities, and community:
– Hear testimonials from student farmworkers
– Try your hand at an onion farming activity
– Explore art and infographics highlighting farmworker realities
