LETTUCE WARS : Timeline

Mid September 1965 Delano grape strike begins
September 1966 UWOC and the NFWA join to form UFWOC
December 1969 GI anti-war coffeehouse opens in Seaside near army training center Fort Ord.
May, 1970 Farm worker rally in Salinas. Chavez speaks outside at Hartnell College. Movement for a Democratic Military act as monitors.
Summer, 1970 Rebellion of soldiers at Fort Ord from Special Processing Detachment (SPD)
June 6, 1970 UFWOC sends telegram to lettuce industry asking for union representation elections
July 27, 1970 Teamsters sign with Salinas and other growers
July 28, 1970 Grape growers sign with UFWOC as a result of the boycott
August 14 1970 National Farm Labor Contractors Assn looking to sign contracts with Teamsters
August 24, 1970 Salinas general lettuce strike begins, 31 companies struck.
August 31, 1970 Interharvest signs with the UFWOC
September 1 Pro-rancher Citizen’s Committee pickets Interharvest, tries to interfere with production, protesting Interharvest contract with UFW
September 17, 1970 Meyers Tomatoes and Brown and Hill recognizes UFWOC begins bargaining.
September 17, 1970 Lettuce strike called off, lettuce boycott begins.
September 24, 1970 Strike resumes against Fresh Pict and D’Arrigo Brothers
October 9, 1970 Fresh Pict signs with UFWOC
November 20, 1970 D’Arrigo signs with UFWOC.
December 4, 1970 Chavez arrested on contempt charges in Salinas for not calling off the lettuce boycott of Bud Antle.
April 23, 1971 Mel Finnerman signs with UFWOC in the Imperial Valley
Spring 1971 Begin working in the fields
May 7, 1971 First meeting between UFWOC and grower committee to discuss farm worker contracts.
July 7, 1971 Anti-farm worker legislation supported by the Western Growers Assoc., AB 964 is killed in the Assembly Ways and Means Committee.
August 18, 1971 Heublein and UFWOC sign a contract covering 2000 wine grape workers.
October 27, 1971 Anti-Farm worker bill SB 40 killed in Assembly Labor Relations Committee.
Fall, 1971 On a Broccoli crew with D’Arrigo Brothers.
Winter 1971 Attend tractor school.
January 10, 1972 Larry Itlion Filipino organizer quits UFWOC. (Salinas Californian editorial – “There have been claims ever since Chavez came to Salinas that he was surrounded by social revolutionaries not true labor organizers”.
February 16, 1972 UFW member Romulo Avalos, 21, shot and killed by an INS agent in Atwater at a Gallo orchard.
February 25, 1972 UFWOC receives charter from the AFL CIO.
March 1972 The Worker of the Salinas Valley appears
March 13, 1972 Chavez announces international lettuce boycott.
April / May 1972 Working on a cauliflower crew
Early Summer 1972 Working on a lettuce machine at Bud Antle.
July 1972 Salinas Californian article on Rancho De La Fe Farm Coop 10 miles south of Salinas.
September 1, 1972 2000 workers on strike against Interharvest
September 14, 1972 Agreement with Interharvest includes Citizen’s Participation Day provision
October 2, 1972 Freshpict ends lettuce and celery production
October 3 1972 Interharvest and UFWOC negotiate over wages. Richard Chavez head of Salinas office
November 1972 D’Arrigo refuses to sign new contract with UFW.
November 1972 Proposition 22, anti-farm worker initiative defeated.
December 1972 Strike begins against D’Arrigo Bros. in Imperial Valley
February 1973 Strikes against D’Arrigo and Dave Walsh. Demonstrations against labor contractor Tony Guzman for scabbing at Dave Walsh.
March 1973 Picketing at Stewart Hill camp in Salinas. Strike breakers from Stockton brought to scab at D’Arrigo walk out when they find out a strike is going on.
March 1973 Teamsters sign contracts with labor contractors organization.
March 1973 “Teamster” contractor Frank Vargas brings D’Arrigo strike breakers to his camp in Chualar
March 24 1973 Salinas march from Montemart against Nixon, demanding he step down
April 2 1973 Farm labor contractor Lee Boyd’s bus burned at Vertin Camp in Salinas after he brings in scabs
April 16, 1973 Teamsters and Coachella growers sign grape contracts
April 16, 1973 Steinberg and RK Larsen sign UFW contracts in Coachella
April 20, 1973 25 day sentence for contempt in Walsh strike, strike coordinator Jerry Kay and strikers Odilon Garcia, Jose Ortiz, and Tony Guevara are fined.
April 20, 1973 Salinas workers in the “Division del Norte” help spark strike in Coachella.
April 21, 1973 Charges against 300 demonstrators dropped in Coachella 85% of grape growers sign Teamster.
April 1973 Federal Trade Commission rules that Interharvest must leave the produce industry. (This ruling is later reversed.)
April 1973 Fresh Pict sells portion of Salinas and Imperial Valley vegetable business
May 1, 1973 400 rally at Sherwood Park for May Day
May 11 1973 Teamsters Union signs contract with D’Arrigo Brothers
May 10 1973 George Meany AFL-CIO gives $1.6 million to the UFWOC for the grape strike
June 6, 1973 A wildcat strike at Bruce Church in Gonzales/ Salinas. Workers at Salinas Lettuce Farmers Coop camp refuse to work.
June 11, 1973 Chavez pledges support for a general strike in Salinas in the near future.
June 16, 1973 Finerman breaks off negotiations with the UFWOC
July 1973 Teamster goons pulled out of fields in Coachella
August 14, 1973 400 UFW members and supporters released after 2 weeks in jail for violating injunction
August 16, 1973 Farm worker Nagi Daifullah killed by police in Lamont
August 17 Juan De La Cruz while on a picketline in Lamont
August 30, 1973 68 UFW pickets arrested at Gallo Wines in Livingston after Gallo signed with Teamsters and moves to evict striking farm workers from its camp.
September, 1973 Jurisdictional agreement between Fitzimmons and Meany announced
September 21, 1973 First UFW union convention in Fresno
September 1973 Issue of UFW paper El Malcriado recalled and burned. Salinas Worker banned from UFW hall.
November 1973 Pact between UFW – Teamsters collapses
March 1973 UFW opens office in Watsonville
February 10, 1974 Salinas Worker Forum on China at the Salinas Labor Temple
April 1974 Almaden signs with UFWOC
July 1974 Many arsons at Teamster controlled ranches in lettuce and grapes reported
Summer 1974 A wave for farm strikes up and down California
Summer 1974 UFW makes anti-illegals campaign its number one priority
Summer 1974 Tomato strike in the Stockton area
June 1974 Teamster announce they will sign with 35 Watsonville apple growers
July 11+, 1974 Teamsters sign with 15 Watsonville apple growers (Contracts linked to Teamsters signing up other Watsonville apple growers and apple growers in other states as well).
July 12 1974 Chavez speaks at Alisal High School gym along with Monseignor Higgins representing the National Council of Catholic Bishops and Consultant to U.S. Catholic Bishops Committee on Farm Labor
July 31, 1974 Manuel Chavez announces a general strike against No. California tomato growers. Picketing in Stockton area.
August 22, 1974 4 days of slowdowns at Interharvest.
September 5 1974 Teamsters sign with Watsonville apple growers
September 14, 1974 Bob Martin of Cel-A-Pak and Thomas Hitchcock of Let-Us-Pak named in an 11 count misdemeanor indictment by a SF grand jury for the bribery of Teamsters official Theodore Gonzalves in 1970. A $10 thousand bribe and $3 thousand expense payment alleged.
September 15, 1974 NY Times Magazine article “Is Chavez Beaten?”
September 25, 1974 Ex Teamster official Gonzalves pleads no contest to bribery charges.
September 26, 1974 Strike begins at Watsonville apple grower Buak. Teamsters pledge support to defeat the strike.
October 4, 1974 Restraining order on picketing Buak. Buak still waiting for workers Teamsters promised.
October 11, 1974 Labor contractor Jaime Amescua’s buses burned.
October 12, 1974 Arrested for arson. Charges dropped several days later.
October 24, 1974 Teamster – grower bribery scandal goes to trial
May 1975 Farm worker mobilization to Sactramento in support of legislation shuts down harvest in some areas.
June 5, 1975 Agriculture Labor Relations Act (ALRA) becomes law
July 19, 1975 Teamsters – growers renew contracts after “strike threat” theater
Late July, 1975 Farm union elections begin under ALRA
July 28, 1975 Teamsters - Antle renew contract
August 15 – 17 Bi-annual UFW Convention (Resolution on undocumented immigrants)
August 28, 1975 ALRB office set up at 21 W. Laurel Dr. suite M
August 1975 UFW protests arrest of 32 undocumented immigrants as an attempt to hurt their union election chances
September 5, 1975 First Farm vote in Castroville
September 11, 1975 Vote at Interharvest 1,167 UFW 28 Teamsters 18 no union
September 23, 1975 UFW wins election at Meyers tomatoes 211 to 97 no union
October, 1975 Fired from Finerman, file complaint with the ALRB
October 14, 1975 UFW wins 9 out of 10 elections at Watsonville apple companies. The only loss, Buak.
October 16, 1975 Interharvest election certified
October 31, 1975 UFW wins at Paul Masson 313 to 11 no union
November 4, 1974 UFW wins at Almaden 518 to 11 no union
November 11, 1975 New ALRB head Sam Cohen
Late Fall, 1975 Working with Willie Morales in Huron, heavy rain, muddy camp. Workers protest and get a 10 raise per box.
December 3, 1975 UFW certified at Norton
December 1975 After 163 elections in central coast area UFW has 72 victories about 7000 workers.
January 8, 1976 UFW certified at Mann Packing Co.
January 10, 1976 D’Arrigo testifies to meetings with CIA people in story about a spy who broke in at UFW offices in 1970.
January 26, 1976 UFW protests fund cut off to ALRB; mobilizations to Sacramento.
January 30, 1976 ALRB office closes in Salinas
February 6, 1976 Union election at Norton company in Blyth and Calexico UFW wins
February 6, 1976 Agricultural Labor Relations Board runs out of funds
February 12, 1976 Wildcat at Norton in Imperial Valley a week after UFW won election. Wildcat to support the loaders.
February 13, 1976 UFW announces initiative for Proposition 14
May 1976 Cal Coastal signs with UFW, 12th Salinas Valley grower to sign
Summer 1976 Bicentennial campaign taken to labor camps.
August 6, 1976 Farm workers get unemployment insurance for the first time
September 23, 1976 Confrontation with Border Patrol at Silliman ranch in Watsonville. Undocumented worker beaten. Watsonville farm workers and activists form a committee against the migra
Winter 1976 Working in the Imperial Valley. Fight with a labor contractor.
Winter 1977 At Cal Coastal Farms in Imperial Valley.
March 10, 1977 Teamsters and UFW sign agreement Teamsters will leave the fields.
Summer 1977 Cesar Chavez travels to the Philippines
July 13, 1977 Chavez writes letter to boycott offices and supporters calling for a discussion of a new business model for the union.
August 1977 UFW convention features Filipines Consul and Labor Secretary from the Philippines. Philip Veracruz announces he’s quitting the UFW executive board.
Spring 1978 Fired from California Coastal
Summer 1978 CPD / Inquisition meeting at Sherwood School
Summer 1978 Working on Sun Harvest #6 ground crew.
January 19, 1979 Strike against Cal Coastal begins in El Centro in the Imperial Valley
January 22, 1979 Strike against Sun Harvest begins
February 10, 1979 Rufino Contreras killed in Mario Saikon field
March 7, 1979 1,000 workers walk off the job in Salinas fields, 4,000 people march in Salinas in support of the strike
June 11, 1979 Strikers rushing fields to drive out scabs in Salinas
July 23, 1979 Marshall Ganz announces that Chavez will call for a general strike after the end of a march if growers have not agreed to a contract by then.
July 25, 1979 Chavez formally announces plan for marches from San Francisco and San Ardo to Salinas. Makes no mention of a general strike.
July 27, 1979 Chavez writes a letter to boycotters, and union supporters for funds to begin a new lettuce boycott and send workers from Salinas around the country.
August 4, 1979 Antle agrees to a $5 hour minimum and a pledge to pay 25 cents an hour more than other union ranches agree to in their contracts.
August 11, 1979 End of 12 day marches converge on Salinas.
August 12, 1979 UFW union convention in Salinas. Delegates approve a resolution for a general strike.
August 27, 1979 West Coast Farms signs new contract agreeing to UFW strike demands.
September 1, 1979, Sun Harvest signs new contract with a $5.25 an hour minimum wage.
Summer 1981 UFW convention in Fresno. Salinas delegation and others walk out in protest of anti-democratic maneuvers and threats.
Dec. 18, 1981 ALRB decision on binding arbitration – Sun Harvest cuts 40% of the workers employed in its operations turning over operations of cauliflower and broccoli to others growers and labor contractors.
April 26, 1985: Cal Coastal announces it will go out of business
August 9, 1986: Number of farm labor contractors has increased to 59 in Monterey County, almost triple the number (22) in 1980.

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Timeline