Speech #880207044

Adequate housing must be provided and relates closely and is a necessary part of any recruitment program. Even such an enlightened State as California. in providing housing for migratory labor. has failed to provide any but barrackslike accommodations for single men. with no provision for families. It is important that rest stops be provided for overnight use of migrants while in transit from their homes to distant places of employment. My concern with this very pressing and important national problem is shared by many of you. my colleagues. and many of our friends in the Senate. Indeed. Senator HARRISON WILLIAMS of New Jersey and others have introduced and supported favorable action by the Senate on no less than five bills which have been referred to the Committee on Education and Labor. These bills provide for financial assistance to the States to improve educational opportunities for migrant agricultural employees and their children. assisting States. through the Childrens Bureau. in providing for daycare services for children of migrant agricultural workers. establishment of a National Advisory Council on Migratory Labor. amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act to extend the child labor provisions of the act to certain children employed in agriculture. providing for registration of contractors of migrant agricultural workers. Eminent Members of this body have introduced in this session no less than 25 bills. some being identical with others. which are pending before various of our committees. which correspond with the above Senate bills. and further provide for the establishment of a minimum wage rate for migrant agricultural workers under the Fair Labor Standards Act. and authorize the Secretary of Labor to develop and maintain a voluntary farm labor recruitment program. I cannot stress too strongly our responsibility to enact effective legislation to provide adequate wages. housing. and allied working incentives for the migrant laborers. and to assist the agriculture industry by providing labor pools to harvest and process their products. This Congress is considering. under the leadership of one of its mostable committees. the Presidents war on poverty. Let us not forget that the substandard living and working conditions of the migratory farmworker represents one of the most infamous and deepseated stigmas on our affluent society.