Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaims Farmworkers Day,

March 31, 2026

Gov. Gavin Newsom

By KAREN VELIE

Gov. Gavin Newsom today issued a proclamation declaring March 31 as “Farmworkers Day.”

Last week, Newsom signed a bill to rename California’s Cesar Chavez Day to “Farmworkers Day.” Recent allegations that Chavez had sexually abused girls and women while he promoted a farmworker labor rights movement in the 1960s led to a rush of agencies removing Chavez’s name from memorials and celebrations.

Newsom’s proclamation

Farmworkers are the backbone of California. This state is home to over one-third of all farmworkers in the United States – and they feed the nation: as the largest agricultural state, California produces one-third of the nation’s vegetables, and nearly two-thirds of its fruits and nuts. We are the fourth largest economy in the world because farmworkers make it possible.

But farmworkers contribute far more than their labor – from landmark social movements to food, music, and art, this community is foundational to the prosperity and vitality of California as we know it.

The farmworker movement was, and is, a collective movement, bigger than any one person. Workers were willing to put their lives and their livelihoods on the line to fight for the right to a fair, just, and dignified job. Their efforts to secure better working and living conditions, the right to organize for fair pay, and other protections contributed to the broader civil rights and labor movements, inspiring generations of new leaders and building a legacy of advocacy that continues to this day.

In recent years, California expanded opportunities for farmworker homeownership, created new farmworker resource centers, advanced protections in the workplace and worker outreach, opened new labor rights enforcement offices in the Central Valley, expanded immigration legal assistance and job training, and has made significant progress in extending health care access to low-income Californians of all ages, regardless of immigration status.

California is fighting back against cruel and aggressive immigration actions that terrorize and hurt farmworkers and their families, with a hostile federal government that ignores the humanity and the many essential contributions of this community. These and other efforts continue in partnership with the Legislature, community-based organizations, worker organizations, philanthropic partners, and stakeholders to better support farmworkers and their families.

We owe a deep debt of gratitude to the farmworkers at the heart and soul of California, who sacrifice and contribute so much to our state. Today, on Farmworkers Day, we celebrate the farmworker movement and recognize that the struggles of farmworkers continue. We renew and reaffirm our commitment to showing up for farmworkers in return.

Now therefore I, Gavin Newson, Governor of the State of California, do hereby proclaim March 31, 2026, as “Farmworkers Day.”