For Release:
May 29, 1996
11 am Wednesday, in Salinas
HISTORIC CONTRACT SIGNING CEREMONY TO END BITTER 17-YEAR UFW-BRUCE CHURCH INC. FIGHT
A bitter 17-year conflict between the union founded by Cesar Chavez and one of California’s largest lettuce growers will end with a historic contract signing ceremony Wednesday in Salinas where the parties will pledge to build "a partnership of cooperation" that will benefit both sides.
Among those signing the union contract will be Chavez’s son-in-law and successor as United Farm Workers president, Arturo Rodriguez, UFW co-founder, Dolores Huerta, and Bruce Church Inc. (BCI) President Steve Taylor, whose father battled the UFW during the 1970s and 80s. They will join dozens of BCI workers in a public event starting at 11 am, on Wednesday at the Cesar E Chavez Library, located at 615 Williams Rd. (Cross St. Barden), in Salinas.
BCI, which grows lettuce and other vegetables from the Salinas Valley south to Imperial County, was one of several companies struck by the Chavez-led UFW in 1979. A boycott of BCI lettuce led to years of legal and public relations confrontations across the nation between the UFW and company. Chavez died of natural causes on April 23, 1993 after two days of testimony during the latest lawsuit in Yuma Ariz.
In remarks set for delivery Wednesday, UFW President Arturo Rodriguez describes "the years of pain and suffering" that it took to produce an agreement. He also praises BCI’s Steve Taylor for "being willing to sit down and honestly deal with issues" concerning his work force and for "building a partnership of cooperation for the mutual benefit of both farm workers and the company."
Rodriguez adds that the new union contract "is a tremendous tribute to Cesar Chavez’s life and work."