Coalition of Immokalee Workers

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The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) is "a community-based worker organization" whose members are "largely Latino, Haitian, and Mayan Indian immigrants working in low-wage jobs throughout the state of Florida." Structured along the lines of a "workers' center" model, the Coalition seeks to involve its members in working on behalf of their interests. Formed in 1993, the organization has seen major successes, including an historical agreement with Taco Bell in March 2005 and various ongoing anti-slavery actions.

In 2001, the CIW launched a boycott of Taco Bell, asking the company to take responsibility for the working conditions and wages of the farmworkers that supply the company's tomatoes. During the campaign, called "Boot the Bell," the CIW worked closely with religious and community groups and a student network, the Student/Farmworker Alliance, to pressure Taco Bell from different social angles. On March 8, 2005, Yum! Brands, Inc., which owns Taco Bell, agreed to all of the organization's demands, including the CIW’s requests that the company pay a penny more per pound of tomatoes to increase workers' wages. Yum! will also work with the CIW to enforce a code of conduct to monitor worker complaints and avoid abuses in the fields.

A year after the Taco Bell boycott, the CIW announced a campaign asking McDonald’s to agree to similar terms as Yum! Brands, Inc. The CIW called on McDonald’s to pay an increased price for its tomatoes and work directly with the CIW to implement an enforceable code of conduct. In response to the CIW’s requests, McDonald’s created a code of conduct that the CIW deemed insufficient. Later, on April 9, 2007, an agreement was brokered between McDonalds and CIW, with help from the Carter Center, that included the penny increase for Florida tomatoes. Pickers were paid about 45 cents for every 32-pound (14.5 kg) bucket of fruit they pick, which will now be raised to 77 cents.^[1]

The CIW also works in partnership with Interfaith Action, a broad-based network of people of faith, both in southwest Florida and throughout the nation.^{[citation needed]}

According to its official website:

The CIW is also a co-founder of the national Freedom Network Institute on Human Trafficking. We are Regional Coordinators for the Southeastern US for the Institute, conducting trainings for law enforcement and social service personnel in how to identify and assist slavery victims, as well as advocating for the full prosecution of all traffickers, including corporations and their sub-contractors. At the state level, we are members of the US Attorney Anti-Trafficking Task Force as well as Florida State University’s statewide Working Group against Human Trafficking through its Center for the Advancement of Human Rights.

In 2003, the CIW was awarded the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award for its work.

1 Resistance to "Penny a Pound" agreements
2 See also
3 References
- 3.1 Sources
4 External links

[edit] Resistance to "Penny a Pound" agreements

According to a story dated November 6, 2007 in the Chicago Tribune, the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange is contesting the agreements the Coalition made with McDonald's and Yum! Brands, Inc. The point was made that neither McDonald's nor Yum! Brands grows any tomatoes or hires any pickers. McDonald's and Yum! Brands affirmed their intention to carry the agreement out and a spokesman for Coalition of Immokalee Workers affirmed her confidence that it would be, citing the possibility of key growers breaking ranks.^[2]