Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R, C,I - Batavia) recently expressed his displeasure with Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon’s decision to lower the farm overtime threshold from 60 to 40 hours. With inflation and minimum wage set to rise again, this decision could force hundreds of farms out of business in the very near future.

“This decision is going to have grave consequences for all New Yorkers because, without farms, our state has no food,” Hawley said. “Farmers provide one of the most important services to our state and many of our farmers and farm laborers rely on the current 60-hour overtime threshold to ensure profits. Farmers face challenges unlike any other business and the last thing Albany should be doing from their ivory towers is telling our local farmers how to run their businesses. I will continue to lead the charge toward overturning this terrible ruling to protect our local agriculture operations.”

New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) Commissioner Roberta Reardon today issued an order accepting the recommendation of the Farm Laborers Wage Board to lower the current 60-hour threshold for overtime pay to 40 hours per week by January 1, 2032, allowing 10 years to phase in the new threshold. The Board included its recommendation in a report that the Board voted to advance to the Commissioner during its final meeting on September 6, 2022, following a two-year process and 14 public meetings and hearings. Following a rulemaking process to enact the Commissioner's Order, farm work in excess of 40 hours per week would be required to be compensated at overtime rates, as it is in other occupations.

“I thank the Farm Laborers Wage Board and all New Yorkers who provided insight and input during this inclusive process,” said New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon. “I come from a farm community myself, so I know how important the agricultural sector is to the New York State economy. Based on the findings, I feel the Farm Laborers Wage Board’s recommendations are the best path forward to ensure equity for farm workers and success for agricultural businesses.”

Beginning in 2020, the Board held public hearings to gather testimony from farm owners, workers, advocacy groups, and academic researchers. Recordings of these hearings and additional materials are available on the NYSDOL’s Farm Laborers Wage Board webpage. The report released on September 6 documents and summarizes the Board’s process and its findings. The Board was convened pursuant to the Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act passed by the New York State Legislature and signed by the Governor in 2019.

The Board’s report recommended that the reduction in overtime hours take place by reducing the overtime work limit by 4 hours every other year beginning in 2024 until reaching 40 hours in 2032, giving agriculture businesses proper time to adjust.

During the course of the Board's deliberations in 2022, the Governor and Legislature enacted three new tax credits to assist farm employers in transitioning to a lower overtime standard.  

• The Investment Tax Credit was increased from 4 percent to 20 percent for farm businesses, providing an encouragement for potential automation of farm production.
• The Farm Workforce Retention Tax Credit was increased to $1,200 per employee to provide near-term relief to farmers.
• Most importantly, a new refundable overtime tax credit was established for overtime hours paid by farm employers at the level established by the Board and confirmed by the Commissioner up to 60 hours.

The Board noted that these actions by the Governor and Legislature were supportive of food production and provided a means for farms to transition to a lower overtime standard.

NYSDOL will now be undergoing a rule-making process which will include a 60-day public comment period.  Further details about the rulemaking process will be posted on the NYSDOL’s Farm Laborers Wage Board webpage.

More information on the Farm Laborers Wage Board process and next steps can be found on NYSDOL’s Farm Laborers Wage Board webpage.

Congressman Chris Jacobs (NY-27) introduced the Protect Local Farms Act (H.R. 8756) to prevent the New York State Farm Laborers Wage Board's recommendation to lower the overtime threshold from 60 hours to 40 hours per week from taking effect. Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (NY-21) is a co-sponsor of the legislation as well.

“Two days ago, the New York State Farm Laborers Wage Board handed down their final recommendation to lower the overtime threshold for farm workers from 60 hours to 40 hours – this is a devastating decision made by out-of-touch bureaucrats which will bankrupt family farms throughout our state and end farming as we know it. If Governor Hochul approves this recommendation, she is signing the death warrant for thousands of farms,” Jacobs said. “Farming is not like other industries. It is not a normal work week, is subject to weather, and operates within very slim margins. None of these factors were properly considered before this recommendation was made. Our already small workforce will be further depleted as workers seek more hours in other states, and our farmers will face dire financial burdens. That is why I am proud to introduce the Protect Local Farms Act to combat this ignorant decision and keep the threshold at 60 hours. We need our New York farmers – they’re critical to our community, economy, and health.”

“I’m standing up for our hardworking farmers and workers devastated by Albany’s out-of-touch decision to lower the farmworker overtime threshold. As this decision jeopardizes New York’s agriculture industry, puts thousands of farm laborers out of work, and makes New York less competitive by sending our workers to neighboring states in the midst of a labor shortage, this bill will set a federal standard to ensure the overtime threshold for agricultural workers cannot be lowered beyond 60 hours a week, so our farmers can continue to operate their farms and New York can continue its strong contributions to our food security. I am proud to provide this critical check on Far-Left Democrats who are crushing out Upstate farmers. Upstate families will always support our farms, because we understand: No farms, no food,” Stefanik said.

"The farmworker overtime threshold in New York makes it harder for our farms to make ends meet when we face higher labor costs than nearly every other state in the country. Rep. Jacobs common sense legislation looks to put every farm on the same level playing field. A set minimum federal overtime threshold will eliminate the competitive edge one state has over another and benefit farmworkers at the same time," said Patrick McCormick, dairy farmer and New York Farm Bureau State Director.

The Protect Local Farms Act (H.R. 8756) is designed to combat the New York State Farm Laborers Wage Board decision by mandating federally that the overtime threshold for the agriculture industry cannot be set lower than 60 hours per week – keeping New York’s current threshold in place.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R, C, I-Batavia) is expressing disappointment following a decision by the Farm Laborers Wage Board to advance a recommendation to Commissioner of Labor Roberta Reardon to lower the farm laborer overtime threshold from 60 hours to 40. For months, Hawley has stood alongside farmers, farm workers, agricultural advocates, owners of agri-businesses and other lawmakers to call on the board to reject a proposed reduction to the overtime threshold, warning of the devastating effects such a decision would have on rural communities and all who work in the agricultural sector. 

As the board considered whether or not to implement a lower threshold, they collected testimony regarding the proposal during a series of virtual hearings. During those hearings, the vast majority of testimony provided by farmers and farm workers opposed its implementation, warning that it threatened the livelihoods of both farm owners and laborers. 

The concerns expressed by those opposed to lowering the threshold have been corroborated by a number of studies, as a report by Farm Credit East has stated that the total cost of lowering the overtime threshold to 40 hours, coupled with minimum wage increases, would result in an increase in labor costs by over 40 percent for New York’s farms. Another study by Cornell University found that 70 percent of New York farm labor guest workers would not return to New York were the threshold to be lowered and would instead seek work in other states where they have the opportunity to work longer hours.

Following the advancement of the Wage Board’s final report and recommendation, the fate of the farm overtime threshold rests in the hands of Reardon, who has 45 days to decide whether to accept or reject it.

“Now that the fate of farming as we know it here in New York state has been put in jeopardy by the Wage Board, even after hearing how their decision will jeopardize the livelihoods of thousands of farmers and farm laborers, I sincerely hope that Commissioner Reardon will step in to prevent what would prove to be a catastrophic event for rural communities and the entire agricultural sector,” said Hawley. “Lowering this threshold helps nobody while threatening the existence of multi-generational family farms and an entire way of life, so I sincerely hope that ultimately both the threshold and the continued viability of our farms will be preserved.”

After today’s release of the Farm Laborers Wage Board report, members of the Grow NY Farms Coalition called on Governor Hochul and Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon to reject the report and maintain the current overtime threshold at 60 hours per week. 

Members of the Grow NY Farms Coalition stated that the report is the product of a flawed process. They explained how the report downplays important testimony and data from farm workers, farmers, and researchers from Cornell University, and it omits reference of important workforce training and workplace protections already in place – many of which are nation-leading and even stronger than what’s provided in other industries.

Statement from the Grow NY Farms Coalition:

“New Yorkers depend on the viability of local family farms. Yet, recommendations put forth by the Department of Labor in the Farm Laborers Wage Board report will put the future of farming in New York at risk. In fact, this report and its recommendations are not reflective of the significant data and research conducted by academics and industry experts, or the majority of public testimony provided throughout the public hearing process.  We urge Governor Hochul to direct Commissioner Reardon and the Department of Labor to dismiss this report and pause any decisions relating to overtime until the USDA Census of Agriculture is released in 2024, which will help inform potential changes to our state’s volatile, fragile, and necessary agriculture industry.”

New York Farm Bureau President David Fisher said, “I believe the report which was written by the Department of Labor does not reflect the data, research and scope of the full testimony that was provided. It gave added weight to the opinions of those in favor of a lower threshold and discounted the majority of the in-person and written testimony of farmers, farmworkers and agricultural experts. The facts cannot be ignored, even if the report does not give them their due consideration.”

Northeast Dairy Producers Association Vice Chair Keith Kimball said, “The entire Farm Laborer Wage Board process has lacked transparency and integrity from the start, and the final report is no exception. The Wage Board report fails to represent the outpouring of testimony from New York’s agriculture industry, which resulted in over 70% of testimony asking to keep overtime at 60 hours. There’s also no mention of the hundreds of letters or other written and video testimony provided by farmworkers. And, it discredits the economics of family farms and the unique challenges no other industries are faced with. This has not been a fair process. As a farmer who testified himself and whose workers also testified, it is extremely disheartening to feel like those impacted by this decision were never heard and are in fact being ignored.”

New York State Vegetable Growers Association President Brian Reeves said, “I’m disheartened and disappointed that the voices of farmworkers, farmers, and researchers who spoke in support of the current overtime threshold have essentially been ignored. This report shows that the majority of the Wage Board never truly considered all of the information and insights offered to them during this process. I strongly encourage Governor Hochul and Commissioner Reardon to reject this flawed report and maintain the current overtime threshold.”

New York State Horticulture Society and the New York State Berry Growers Association Executive Director Jim Bittner said, “As a farmer and agriculture advocate, I’m extremely concerned about the future of farming in New York if this report is accepted by Commissioner Reardon. The report completely fails to take into account the massive cost increases – especially for fuel and fertilizer – that farmers have faced during the pandemic. There’s also no mention of the fact that New York has lost almost 5,000 farms over the last 20 years, and we’re expecting a new USDA Census report in 2024 which should inform decisions moving forward. We need Governor Hochul and Commissioner Reardon to support our farms and stay at 60.”

Cornell Research Report: Click here to watch a video presentation by Cornell University E. V. Baker Professor of Agricultural Economics Chris Wolf.

Cornell Testimony: Click here to watch a video presentation by Cornell Agricultural Workforce Development Director Dr. Richard Stup.

Farm Credit East Report: Click here to watch a video presentation by Farm Credit East.

Once the board delivers its report, Department of Labor Commissioner Reardon will have 45 days to review and announce her decision. Within five days of receipt, DOL will publish notice in at least 10 newspapers of general circulation in the state. Any objections to the report and recommendations can be sent to the Commissioner within 15 days after such publication.

State Senator Ed Rath:

“I am extremely discouraged by the Farm Laborers Wage Board’s decision to lower the overtime threshold from 60 to 40 hours. I have spoken with numerous farmers and farm workers.  Both have made it abundantly clear that this will be extremely detrimental to our family farms and farm workers. This is another example of Albany failing to do its due diligence by listening to critical stakeholders.” 

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) is encouraging constituents to reach out to Labor Commissioner Reardon and Gov. Hochul in the wake of an announcement that the Farm Laborer Wage Board will reconvene on Sept. 6 to vote on whether or not they will advance a final report recommending the farm laborer overtime threshold be lowered from 60 hours to 40. It has been projected by Farm Credit East that farmers’ labor costs could rise by over 40% over the next several years if the overtime threshold is lowered, jeopardizing their continued viability.

The wage board recommended lowering the farm laborer threshold this January, but still has not released a final report containing regulatory recommendations. If they do stick to their earlier recommendation in their final report, it will be Labor Commissioner Reardon’s decision whether or not to accept or reject their recommendations within 45 days of when they’re issued. If Reardon advances recommendations to lower the threshold, Gov. Hochul would then need to choose whether or not they should be signed into law.

“The fate of agriculture as we know it in our state, from the fields to our store shelves, rests in the hands of the Labor Wage Board, our governor, and Labor Commissioner Reardon,” said Hawley. “Farmers from all corners of the state have made it clear that a lowering of the threshold will threaten the well-being of rural communities whose economies have for centuries centered around farming and agriculture. Agri-business owners, farmers and rural advocates have made the dangerous consequences of this decision incredibly clear, so I only hope that the Wage Board, Commissioner Reardon, and Gov. Hochul will do what’s right for our farms and agrarian municipalities.”

Hawley is encouraging anyone concerned for the future of New York’s farms, rural communities and food security to reach out to Labor Commissioner Reardon and Gov. Hochul to urge them not to move forward with this reduction in the farm laborer overtime threshold.

Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon office contact:

Phone: 518-457-9000

Twitter: @NYSDOLCommish

Mailing address:

Roberta Reardon
Commissioner
Department of Labor
State Office Bldg # 12
W.A. Harriman Campus
Albany, NY 12240

Gov. Hochul office contact

Online contact form: https://www.governor.ny.gov/content/governor-contact-form

Phone: 518-474-8390

Twitter: @GovKathyHochul

Mailing address: 

The Honorable Kathy Hochu
Governor of New York State
NYS State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12224

Press release:

Congressman Chris Jacobs (NY-27), NYS Senator Ed Rath (R,C,I - Amherst), and NYS Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) held a press conference this morning to call on Governor Hochul to reject the NYS Farm Laborers Wage Board’s decision to lower the overtime threshold from 60 hours a week to 40 hours.

“Farming is already a business suffering from labor shortages with incredibly tight margins, if the Governor were to accept this decision it would have disastrous impacts on the viability of agriculture in our state and the security of our rural economies,” Jacobs said. “Lowering the threshold would force producers and workers out of our state, and bankrupt generation family farms. I urge the Governor to reject this decision – made at the expense of our farmers – our region’s future prosperity depends on it.”

"The decision by the Farm Laborers Wage Board to lower overtime hours from 60 to 40 hours is fatal to our farms. As the largest industry in New York, agriculture is a vital part of our Upstate community. With this overtime change, many family farms will not survive. I have spoken with countless farmers and farm workers who have shared their concerns with this hour reduction. I remain deeply troubled by this decision and the impact it will have, not only in my district but across our State," Rath said.

“Our state’s agribusinesses and rural communities are staring down the edge of a cliff as they eagerly wait to see whether Gov. Hochul will stand up for them, or for the special interests who’ve been pushing this policy through the bureaucratic process,” Hawley said. “Farmers, lawmakers, farm laborers and experts alike have made clear the devastating consequences this decision will have on agriculture. In this moment, Gov. Hochul has the power to save agriculture in New York state, or put it down a path that will cause it to become something completely unrecognizable. Having represented a rural part of upstate New York in Congress, I sincerely hope she understands how dangerous this decision would be not just for farmers, but for rural communities throughout the state.”

Jacobs recently joined the New York Republican Congressional Delegation in sending a letter to Governor Hochul outlining the disastrous impacts of this recommendation from the wage board and urging her to reject it. You can read that letter here.

These workers, Gabriel told NPR for a recent story about money sent from workers back to Mexico to help support local economies, have helped Comachuen families receive as much as $5 million over three years, by far the town's largest source of income.

These funds sent to Mexico, called remittances, may have exceeded $50 billion for the first time last year, according to the story.

Travis Torrey sent the link to the NPR story to The Batavian noting that as regulators try to limit the number of hours farmer workers can labor each week they're really hurting the people they say they're trying to help.

"I think you can see that coming to WNY to work is their version of the ‘American dream,’" Torrey said. "Everyone that has come here has bettered themselves and families.  The inhumanity is denying them the opportunity.

"Without the farmworkers, there would be no farms," he added. "The same can be said if there are no farms there are no farmworkers."

A week ago, the state's Farm Labor Board, on a 2-1 vote, recommended the overtime threshold for farmworkers be lowered from 60 hours a week to 40 hours a week.

Both farmer-owners and farmworkers have repeatedly spoken out against the rule change over the past few years saying that workers will seek jobs in states that don't restrict potential earnings.

Torrey notes the rule change will hurt workers like Gabriel when they get their hours cut.

From the NPR story:

Gabriel is resigned to working in the United States as long as he can. He sends home about $7,500 each year from what he earns working the fields. That money is largely used to fund his children's education, paying private college fees so his eldest son can be a registered nurse.

His hope is that his children will get university degrees and not have to emigrate. "I am paying for their studies, so that they don't have to do what we had to do," Gabriel says.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is praising the recent decision made by the Department of Labor’s Farm Laborer Wage Board to maintain the 60-hour overtime threshold until at least next November.

Hawley had been advocating in recent months to maintain this overtime threshold in light of a proposal to lower it. Hawley feared it would make operating an agribusiness even more difficult during what has been a hard year for the agricultural sector due to the negative impact COVID-19 has had on the industry. 

“This announcement is a big relief for farmers and agri-business entrepreneurs throughout the state, and I’m glad there’s one less thing to worry about in what’s already been an incredibly challenging year for agriculture,” Hawley said.

“While there is still work to be done helping our farmers through the COVID-19 pandemic, I am glad we avoided what would have certainly been a catastrophic mistake for our farmers and agricultural workers and entrepreneurs.”

A diverse group of agricultural organizations in the state are calling on the 60-hour overtime threshold for farm laborers to remain in place as a New York State Department of Labor wage board determines its fate.

The groups sent a joint letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo outlining why a further reduction in the overtime hourly threshold will be detrimental to the livelihoods of farmers and farmworkers across the state and will expedite automation upon the rural landscape. New York farms already face extreme competitive pressure in the marketplace from farms in other states and countries that can easily undercut New York prices needed to sustain a profitable business. Higher labor costs in New York will only exacerbate that problem.

There is no comparison to other industries in New York state when it comes to farm needs and our labor force. Our food supply is perishable. It depends on weather factors and a changing climate. The competitive commodity markets are dictated by the lowest possible price, prices that farmers must take.

Only those who direct market straight to the consumer off the farm can dictate what they charge and even then, those prices must be competitive with other farm stands and supermarkets. The COVID-19 pandemic also exposed the fragility of our food system as well as its importance to feed fellow New Yorkers during a time of great need. Without those farms, programs like Nourish NY cannot succeed.

The Farm Laborers Wage Board was mandated by the Farm Laborer Fair Labor Practices Act that became law just this year.  The three-member board held public hearings to hear directly from people in agriculture on what a lower overtime threshold would mean. Farmers and their employees overwhelming described the economic challenges they are facing, especially in a pandemic, and how a lower threshold will likely lead to fewer hours available and less income for employees.

Furthermore, the current threshold was agreed upon just last year when all aspects of the farming community and lawmakers came together and negotiated a workable number of 60-hours that struck an appropriate balance to address both the needs of farmworkers and farms.

The letter sent to the Governor reads in part, 

“Please know that if the overtime threshold for New York farm workers is lowered to a level below 60 hours per week, the face of New York agriculture will be irreparably altered and we will no longer remain economically competitive in the crops and commodities that require a labor force. As farmers testified this year before the wage board, varieties of vegetables that require hand labor will continue to disappear, increasingly relying on imports from places that do not have strong worker protections like in New York State. Orchards will be pulled in lieu of field crops that only require machines for planting and harvest. Dairy farms will turn to robotic milking machines at a faster rate than today. Our regional and worldwide competitors—who have no such requirements—will only gain advantage from these changes, not New York farmers.”

The letter concludes by asking that the 60-hour threshold remain the same. Agriculture’s future, particularly the next generation of New York farmers and the communities they support and feed, are dependent upon it.