The people who feed us need our support

Labor urges working people to call on their legislators to support SB 6045, empowering farm workers to organize unions and collectively bargain

OLYMPIA, WA (February 12, 2026) — Washington state has an historic opportunity to expand collective bargaining rights this legislative session with SB 6045, a bill before the state legislature that would enshrine farm workers’ right to organize and collectively bargain.

“Farm workers feed our families; yet despite their essential labor, farm workers have been denied this most basic of rights, excluded from federal labor laws that protect other employees,” said WSLC President April Sims. “SB 6045 rights this wrong for Washington’s farm workers.”

Introduced by State Sen. Rebecca Saldaña and supported by farm worker unions Familias Unidas por la Justicia and the United Farm Workers, the legislation affirms collective bargaining rights for farm workers within Washington and retains the right to strike. SB 6045 prohibits employers from interfering with farmworker organizing and bargaining, with enforcement mechanisms through the state’s established Public Employment Relations Commission and Washington courts. It also establishes processes for certifying exclusive bargaining representatives and requires that procedures related to organizing and bargaining are speedy and provided in the appropriate languages for the workers.

Some farm workers in Washington state have been able to win union recognition without equal legal protection. Workers at Sakuma Brothers Farms are represented by Familias Unidas por la Justicia and covered by a collective bargaining agreement. Securing union representation was a years-long struggle, relying on strikes and a multi-year boycott supported by Washington’s labor movement. But provisions in SB 6045 would reduce reliance on prolonged, disruptive actions; instead, a legal framework would encourage employers to respect farm workers’ organizing rights and engage in good faith with the union, benefiting both workers and agricultural employers. Nearly a decade has passed since Sakuma Brothers workers secured their first union contract in 2017. The farm continues to flourish.

Similar laws empowering farm workers to organize already exist in some states, like California and New York. In these states, farm workers have successfully organized and won their unions in greater numbers, collectively bargaining contracts to improve working conditions.

After decades of exclusion from national labor law guaranteeing the right to organize, Washington now has a chance to right this historic wrong and empower the people who feed us to collectively bargain their working conditions.

TAKE A STAND: Send an email to your state senator urging them to support SB 6045, collective bargaining rights for farm workers.