Stronger Together US and the North Carolina Agribusiness Council Announce a New Partnership to Increase Responsible Recruitment and Ethical Employment Practices in Farm Labor Contracting

Stronger Together US and the North Carolina Agribusiness Council (NCAg) are delighted to announce the formation of a new strategic partnership. This partnership aims to utilize education and certification methods to increase responsible recruitment and ethical employment practices in farm labor contracting. 

Key elements of the partnership will include:

• Jointly developing and launching an educational accreditation program for farm labor contractors (FLCs), beginning in North Carolina. 
• Building the capacity of FLCs to implement, embed, and oversee responsible recruitment leading to more sustainable and transparent business practices. 
• Engaging with national and local stakeholders and agricultural experts in building a leading curriculum and network of FLCs. 

“We are excited about this new partnership with Stronger Together US. We believe Stronger Together’s mission of increasing responsible recruitment and ethical employment practices complements our commitment to advancing the leadership and opportunities for agribusinesses in our state and beyond. We look forward to the impact we can have together.”

– Erica Peterson, Executive Vice President and CEO of North Carolina Agribusiness Council

“NCAg has been a strong ally in our work to increase awareness and the uptake of responsible recruitment practices among FLCs in North Carolina. Both NCAg and Stronger Together US have supported FLCs to embed and demonstrate good practice and contribute to an ecosystem in which jobseekers and workers have access to better opportunities and more just work. We believe we will be able to accomplish even more in NC and nationally together through this solidified partnership.”

– Veronica Ospina, Stronger Together Program Manager for U.S. and Mexico

Click here to register your interest in the program.

Our work with FLCs

Stronger Together US has been working with FLCs in the US since 2019 in an effort to ensure the industry integrates and maintains robust practices for the responsible recruitment of agricultural workers. FLCs provide essential services to U.S. growers who are facing labor shortages by recruiting, and often managing, domestic farmworkers in the U.S. and migrant farmworkers from Mexico through the H-2A visa program. Poor recruitment practices, however, can leave workers vulnerable to unsafe and unacceptable working conditions, and unscrupulous operators undercut the reputation and competitive advantage of ethical and responsible FLCs.  

Stronger Together is working to improve this ecosystem for workers through partnerships, education and our certification scheme – Clearview. Clearview is a global certification program that recognizes FLCs for operating responsibly, professionally, legally and ethically in their sourcing, supply and management of workers. Clearview focuses on evaluating the recruitment and working conditions faced by temporary, seasonal and migrant workers in labor supply chains. In 2021, Oregon-based AgriLabor and California-based AgSocio became the first farm labor contractors (FLCs) to achieve Clearview certification in the United States.

Click here to learn more about our work with FLCs.

The mission of NCAg

North Carolina Agribusiness Council (NCAg) is a non-partisan, non-profit serving as a unified voice for Industry. NCAg’s membership includes a wide variety of North Carolina stakeholders including farmers, ranchers, farm labor contractors, farm workers, manufacturers, processors, suppliers, financiers, transporters, wholesalers, retailers, marketers, communicators and various commodity groups.  

The Council’s core mission is to advance agribusiness interests and programs, thereby increasing employment and expanding agribusiness opportunities in the North Carolina area and nationally. 

NCAg is also proud to work closely with partners at state and federal agencies, universities and community colleges systems, and NGOs to promote, facilitate; educate understanding of sustainability and best practices in agriculture. 

Click here to learn more about NCAg.

Tags: US, Responsible Recruitment, agriculture

Categorised in: Uncategorized, responsible recruitment, United States, News