WASHINGTON - April 30, 2019 - TelAve -- The Association of Farmworker Opportunity Program's (AFOP) Children in the Fields Campaign (CIFC) released a new publication titled "Children in the Fields:  THE STORIES YOU SHOULD KNOW," a report that features quotes and pictures from children of various ages working in United States agriculture in 2019:  seven-, eleven-, and fourteen-year-olds harvesting America's onions, grapes, pears, and corn, all while exposed to harmful and potentially fatal hazards, such as sharp tools, heat stress, and pesticides.

The U.S. long ago outlawed child labor in most industries, but not in agriculture.  Because of loopholes in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), farmworker children, many of them younger than the mandated minimum age of fourteen years old, are working themselves to the bone to help support their families.

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In "The Stories You Should Know," the children's words and experiences tell of the severe hardships they face working in the fields.  In addition to the stories, the report includes brief articles on the specific issues confronting farmworker children; some of the available data on hired youth on farms; and a summary of the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) recent report on the prevalence of child injuries and fatalities in agriculture.  As CIFC Director Melanie Forti says, "We firmly believe the children's stories will serve as a powerful tool for those who advocate on their behalf to initiate change in the nation's laws."

To view the publication online, visit AFOP's website at https://afop.org/cif/#tab-id-6, or to request a hard copy, contact Melanie Forti, CIFC Director at 202-384-1771 or forti@afop.org.

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The Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs is a non-profit national federation of 52 non-profit and public agencies that provide training and employment services to migrant and seasonal farm workers.  AFOP's mission is to improve the quality of life for migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families by providing advocacy for the member organizations that serve them.  That means securing the same rights and benefits for farmworkers that the rest of the American people enjoy.  For additional comment or an interview with an AFOP expert, please contact Melanie Forti at (202) 384-1771 or forti@afop.org.