by Elizabeth Higgins, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program, CCE

Frontline farm workers and meat packing workers who were employed sometime between January 27, 2020 and May 11, 2023 are eligible to receive a $600 Farm and Food Workers Relief Program payment from the federal government.  Although many workers have received this payment already, there are still eligible workers in New York.  Are any of them on your farm?  The window of opportunity to apply for these funds is closing and we want to help you help your workers receive this benefit.

The Agricultural Workforce Development Council of New York State is collaborating with PASA (Pennsylvania Sustainable Agriculture Association) to offer three in-person events in New York State at the end of October where workers can sign up for the program in person.  They will be:

1. Western, NY: October 22 (10-4) and October 23 (9-4) at the Wallington Fire Department, 7863 Ridge Road, Sodus, NY 14551
2. Capitol District, NY: October 25 (9-4) at the Washington County Fairgrounds, 392 Old Schuylerville Rd, Greenwich, NY 12834
3. Hudson Valley, NY: October 26 (9-4) at the CCE Ulster County office, 232 Plaza Rd, Kingston, NY 12401

Applicants must provide acceptable (1) photo identification and (2) proof of employment as a farm worker or meatpacking worker within the U.S. and its territories during the period between January 27, 2020 and May 11, 2023.  Youth (under the age of 18) are eligible for a relief payment. Youth must provide the same documentation as described below.

Acceptable photo identification includes:

• State-issued driver’s license or identification
• Consular- or government-issued identification (foreign or domestic)
• H2A Visa or H2B Visa
• Employer-issued identification

Acceptable proof of employment includes:

• W-2 tax form from 2020, 2021, or 2022
• Pay stub that pre-dates May 11, 2023
• Employment contract
• Letter from an employer, including employee name, occupation, work performed, time period employed, and employer signature
• H2A Visa or H2B Visa

PASA staff will be on-hand to enroll eligible workers who have not yet received their federal payments.  At these events, workers will receive a payment card, so it will be beneficial for workers who do not maintain US bank accounts.

You can learn more about the program and confirm eligibility at www.farmworkers.org.  If you cannot make an in-person event you can still apply for the program online at that website.  You can also check the status of your application if you have already applied.

I have heard from farms who said that their employees applied but did not hear back.  According to PASA they have had applications that were missing information but did not have a good contact number to reach the applicant, so they advised contacting them directly as it is possible that the worker is eligible but there is an error in the application.  If you have questions about the program, contact PASA at (833) 469-3397 or by email at support@pasafarming.org.

New York State employers are no longer required to implement their workforce safety plans. The NYS Department of Health removed the designation of COVID-19 as a serious risk to public health on March 17. As a reminder, employers need to have a HERO Act ready to go, but it can be put on the shelf when a public health threat is not identified by New York State.

See notice from NYS Department of Health below:

NYS HERO ACT

The New York Health and Essential Rights Act (NY HERO Act) was signed into law on May 5, 2021. The law mandates extensive new workplace health and safety protections in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the NY HERO Act is to protect employees against exposure and disease during a future airborne infectious disease outbreak.

Under this law, the New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL), in consultation with the NYS Department of Health, has developed an Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Standard, a Model Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plan, and various industry-specific model plans for the prevention of airborne infectiousdisease. Employers can choose to adopt the applicable policy template/plan provided by NYS DOL or establish an alternative plan that meets or exceeds the standard’s minimum requirements.

The airborne infectious disease exposure prevention plans must go into effect when an airborne infectious disease is designated by the New York State Commissioner of Health as a highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health. When designated, employers are required to provide a copy of the adopted airborne infectious disease exposure prevention plan and post the same in a visible and prominent location within each worksite. Templates and resources are available below.

On March 17, 2022, the designation of COVID-19 as an airborne infectious disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health under the HERO Act ended. Private sector employers are no longer required to implement their workforce safety plans.

Inquiries about the HERO Act can be emailed to Airborne.Infectious.Diseases@labor.ny.gov.

For more information: https://dol.ny.gov/ny-hero-act

With the widespread cases of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, some farm employers have had difficulty staffing regular operations due to employees in quarantine. In many cases, the employees are asymptomatic and would like to be back at work. New York Department of Health recently released: “Advisory on Shortening Isolation Period for Certain Fully Vaccinated Healthcare Workers and Other Critical Workforce.” Farm employees and other agricultural workers are included in the “critical workforce,” this means that fully vaccinated and asymptomatic individuals can return to work after 5 days of quarantine rather than the 10 that was formerly required. Read the NYSDOH Advisory for full details.