The Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB), U. S. Department of Labor (USDOL, or the Department), announces the availability of approximately $7 million total costs (subject to the availability of federal funds) for one cooperative agreement to fund a technical assistance project in Mexico to reduce
credit:
child labor, forced labor, and other forms of labor exploitation in the chile pepper and tomato sectors.
The project-level objective is to increase use of worker protection mechanisms in the chile pepper and tomato sectors including in the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, and Chihuahua.The project should be worker-focused and achieve the following outcomes:• Outcome 1:
Increased mobilization of labor stakeholders3 to address labor violations; and• Outcome 2:
Increased engagement of workers in the chile pepper and tomato sectors to address violations of theirlabor rights.In support of Mexican Labor Law5 and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement6 (USMCA), this project will include efforts to eliminate child and forced labor, improve working conditions, empower workers, and increase economic resiliency of vulnerable households.
The project will employ a holistic approach to addressing violations of labor laws as a means of combating child labor, forced labor, and other forms of labor exploitation.
The project will support the Mexican government’s efforts to increase workers’ knowledge of labor rights and improve workers’ access to effective judicial and non-judicial remediation of labor law violations.
The project will reach workers, including migrant workers in agricultural fields and in processing plants, throughout the chile pepper and tomato supply chains, where child and forced labor have been identified as a problem.
The project will have a particular focus in states that produce chile peppers and tomatoes,including Baja California, Baja California Sur, and Chihuahua.The duration of the project will be a maximum of 4. 5 years (54 months) from the effective date of the award.