Thursday, March 28, 2024

EPA head McCarthy meets workers to discuss new safety standards

EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy
EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy and United Farm Workers (UFW) President Arturo Rodriguez met with farm workers at the Pacific Triple E Farm on Tuesday to discus the updated Worker Protection Standard (WPS).

The EPA rule was finalized in September and protects workers through stricter training requirements, pesticide safety and hazard communication, personal protective equipment, routine washing supplies and emergency decontamination supplies. 

These stronger measures will impact more than 2 million agricultural workers, as well as their families, which includes anyone working on farms, nurseries, and greenhouses. The rule was developed with input from stakeholders, the agricultural community and federal and state government representatives.

At Tuesday’s event, McCarthy joined Rodriguez and Pacific Triple E. Farm General Manager Jack Esformes, as well as other industry stakeholders, in a tour of the Lodi, California farm and a meeting with its workers to discuss the new rule.