Accord reached on farmworkers for immigration bill (LA Times)

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Accord reached on farmworkers for immigration bill

The deal would establish a new 'blue card' for workers already in the U.S. It concludes one of the last major components of sweeping legislation being drafted in the Senate.

By Brian Bennett and Lisa Mascaro, Washington Bureau
April 12, 2013, 10:39 p.m.

WASHINGTON — Agreement was reached late Friday between farm labor unions and growers on one of the last major components of a sweeping immigration bill being drafted in the Senate — a deal that would set the terms of wages, visas and working conditions for migrant agriculture workers.


The accord, struck after weeks of touch-and-go talks between representatives of industry leaders and workers and brokered by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), would establish a new "blue card" for migrant workers already in this country without legal permission, and allow up to 336,000 visas for farmworkers.

The three-part package is hugely important for California's agriculture industry. It will be folded into a comprehensive immigration overhaul being written by a bipartisan group of eight senators, who are aiming to unveil the far-reaching legislation as soon as Tuesday.

Feinstein, who is not one of the eight, led the farmworker effort with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), who are part of the broader group, and Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), her longtime partner on agricultural worker immigration issues.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-immigration-agriculture-20130413,0,5539574.story