The Strawberry Workers Campaign is using the slogan “5 cents for fairness.” What does that mean?
According to the California Institute for Rural Studies in Davis, increasing the average workers’ piece pay rate by 50 percent would increase the cost of a pint of berries by only 5 cents. This is the basis for the institute’s calculation: at the current piece rate, strawberry workers earn about 10 cents per pint. Increasing that to 15 cents, or by 50 percent, would hike the cost of a pint of berries by 5 cents. Strawberry worker pay is so depressed that even a significant pay increase would make little difference to consumers or the industry.
