The United Farm Workers (or UFW) Foundation is now accepting applications for the USDA Farm and Food Worker Relief (FFWR) Grant Program. The FFWR Program is a program that would allow UFW Foundation to provide a one-time payment of $600 to farmworkers affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Under the FFWR Program, relief payments will be available to eligible frontline workers in farming activities, meatpacking and grocery store work during the period extending from January 27, 2020 until the emergency period has been declared over. Eligibility requirements include identity and employment verification, and immigration status is not a factor. There is no cost to apply for the FFWR program.
“Farm workers were essential workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic who were left out of various relief efforts, yet were the most affected by the pandemic, both financially and physically.” said UFW Foundation CEO Diana Tellefson Torres. “But now the UFW Foundation is in a unique position to offer relief to families who are still feeling the economic burden exacerbated by the pandemic. We look forward to working with USDA and various community groups throughout the United States in distributing these funds. It’s the least we can do for the people who kept us fed during the pandemic.”
UFW Foundation has been advocating for farm worker relief since the pandemic started, making it known that even though farm workers are essential workers, they haven’t been treated as such. Unlike other workers, farm workers do not qualify for overtime benefits, typically receive low wages, and experience poor working conditions.
For more information on eligibility requirements and other information, we encourage potential applicants to visit our website at https://www.ufwfoundation.org/ffwr.
Applicants can sign up for the program with the UFW Foundation at (877) 881-8281.
