CRLA Foundation Joins UFW Foundation & United Farm Workers in Lawsuit Challenging Unlawful Farmworker Wage Cuts

New federal rule would slash farmworker pay by $5–$7 per hour and shift $2.46 billion annually from workers to employers—one of the largest wage transfers in U.S. agricultural history.

Sacramento, CA (November 25, 2025) — The California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation (CRLA Foundation) has joined 18 farmworkers, the United Farm Workers (UFW), and the UFW Foundation in filing a federal lawsuit to block the Administration’s newly announced rule cutting wages for agricultural workers nationwide. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, the lawsuit seeks to reverse a policy advocates describe as both unlawful and deeply harmful to U.S. workers.

On October 2, the Department of Labor released a rule slashing the wages of H-2A agricultural guestworkers by $5–$7 per hour, effectively transferring $2.46 billion every year from farmworkers to employers. The rule was issued without public comment, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, and immediately lowers pay for both domestic and H-2A workers on shared job sites. Advocates warn it will incentivize employers to replace local workers with lower-paid guestworkers—undercutting American workers and expanding an already unregulated H-2A program that has grown sevenfold since 2005.

This rule mirrors a nearly identical attempt from the first Trump administration, which was successfully blocked in 2020 after litigation led by UFW and the UFW Foundation. A federal court previously found those wage cuts in violation of federal labor protections, warning they would depress wages and workplace standards across the agricultural sector.

“We join our partners to stop this Administration from unlawfully and arbitrarily cutting wages of farmworkers across the nation,” says Amagda Pérez, Executive Director of CRLA Foundation. “Farm workers toil the soil under harsh and unforgiving working conditions to feed this country, yet they struggle to keep a roof over their heads and feed their families. This Administration’s wage cut adversely affects farmworkers and their families.”

Leaders in farmworker advocacy organizations echoed the lawsuit’s urgency.

“There is nothing ‘America First’ about expanding exploitative guestworker programs that undercut and displace American workers,” said Teresa Romero, President of the United Farm Workers. “If this President will not fight for American farm workers, then we will.”

Legal partners underscored the scale of harm. “Farmworkers already work at the lowest wages in the country,” said Mario Martinez, President of Martinez Aguilasocho Law, Inc. “Now their wages are being cut even more so growers can have more profits. We’re going to the courts because farmworkers deserve respect, a voice, and a government that follows the law.”

CRLAF remains committed to defending the rights, wages, and dignity of U.S. farmworkers and ensuring that no administration can sidestep legal protections to benefit corporate agricultural interests at the expense of working families.

Media Contact: Alexa Bandala

abandala@crlaf.org

(916) 741-0944