BRATTLEBORO-I have been in the Vermont agriculture scene for 33 years, mostly in the vegetable farming world. My first stint at Harlow Farms in Westminster ended in 2011 after Tropical Storm Irene flooded the root vegetable fields with water from the Connecticut River, which made the root vegetables unsalable due to waste contamination.
I appreciate the appreciation of Vermont farmers that The Commons has been showing over the past few months, but can't you recognize a few of the smaller local farms, like New Leaf CSA, instead of these large multigenerational family-run farms?
I'm inspired to write to you because of the front page Paul Miller article. I've never met him, he seems fine, and dairy seems like a solid Vermont agriculture field. It really just makes me think of the recent Paul Harlow article ["Honoring a 'thriving farm legacy,'" News, Aug. 26], which I almost wrote a letter about at the time.
I support Proposal 3 because I hope its wording will work to protect farmhands and farm workers from the petty "farmers" who own the farms. As it currently stands, agriculture workers in Vermont face penalties for collective bargaining, and it creates some rather tense working environments in a field that doesn't have guarantees for overtime pay or minimum wage and is among the top-three dangerous international industries because of exposure to the elements and use of heavy machinery.
I have had to constantly listen to these large farmers wonder publicly why they have trouble hiring locals and how they can create more types of year-round positions, while treating any attempts at organizing the workforce as a direct attack against their income and lifestyle.
I love working in agriculture. It has been a rewarding career that has brought me to different countries and has exposed me to many new ideas and perspectives, and Vermont and Vermont farms taught me many great skills beyond growing vegetables, skills such as carpentry, masonry, and tractor repair.
The organic vegetable industry in Vermont really needs modern protection and safety standards for workers, however, and the workers need to be guaranteed they can participate in these conversations without risking retaliation firing from their employers.
Vermont agriculture is simply being held back by a group of people who have a specific idea on how farming is done, and they have enough power and enough influence to keep it that way.
Keep up the great reporting!
Samuel Blesdoe
Brattleboro
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