WEST PALM BEACH, FL - Today, Congresswoman Lois Frankel (FL-21) announced that Laura Germino, co-founder of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, will be her guest for President Trump’s first State of the Union address on Tuesday, January 30 in Washington, DC.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) is a worker-based human rights organization headquartered in Florida focused on supporting farmworkers. In her role, Ms. Germino was instrumental in establishing CIW’s revolutionary Fair Food Program, which is nationally recognized as a success story in eliminating sexual harassment and increasing wages for tomato farmworkers.

The Fair Food Program (FFP) created a Code of Conduct for tomato growers to enforce, which includes the right to work free of sexual harassment and assault, and partnered with large retailers to ensure they only purchase tomatoes from growers that adhere to it. Under the Fair Food Program, an independent organization conducts audits of the farms, investigates harassment claims and runs a 24/7 hotline. In order to raise wages, the retailers agree to pay a penny-per-pound tomato surcharge that goes directly to the workers. Today, 90 percent of Florida’s tomato growers are part of the Fair Food Program and there have been virtually no cases of sexual harassment thanks to CIW’s initiative. Additionally, the program is expanding every year and it now operates in seven states, and three different crops as well as Vermont’s dairy industry.

“Laura’s tireless efforts to provide workers with a safe, dignified workplace is an example that all industries – from farms, to hotels, to Hollywood – can follow,” said Rep. Frankel. “Our nation is in the middle of a cultural revolution, where workers are demanding respectful workplaces that are free of sexual harassment. I’m bringing Laura and her success story to Washington to echo that call.”

“We've gone from a time when being groped or even assaulted by a supervisor was the daily bread of farmworker women to a time when women - and men - can work without fear in the fields,” said Ms. Germino. “As one farmworker put it, 'our Program has restored our dignity.' The FFP already expanded beyond East Coast agriculture into other industries, and now the model holds promise for millions of workers in industries across the U.S. and the globe.”

Additionally, Ms. Germino serves as the Director of CIW’s Anti-Slavery Program and is internationally recognized for her work in combating slavery and human trafficking. With CIW, she has uncovered, investigated, and assisted in the prosecution of many forced labor operations in the agriculture industry since the 1990s. Her work earned her the State Department’s prestigious TIP Hero Award for her “perseverance against slavery operations in the U.S. agricultural industry” and “determination to eliminate forced labor in supply chains.” In 2015, CIW received the Presidential Medal for Extraordinary Efforts to Combat Human Trafficking.

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