{"id":239810,"date":"2026-03-27T21:28:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T21:28:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/239810\/"},"modified":"2026-03-27T21:28:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T21:28:10","slug":"california-is-expanding-support-for-farmworkers-through-the-rural-strategic-engagement-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/239810\/","title":{"rendered":"California is expanding support for farmworkers through the Rural Strategic Engagement Program"},"content":{"rendered":"

Farmworker Awareness Week\u00a0<\/p>\n

Blog post: March 27, 2026<\/p>\n

California is deepening its ongoing commitment to the farmworkers who feed the nation and sustain our agricultural economy.<\/p>\n

Through the Rural Strategic Engagement Program (RSEP), the Labor & Workforce Development Agency is transforming how state services connect with and support California\u2019s agricultural workforce.<\/p>\n

The goal of RSEP is to strengthen coordination between LWDA\u2019s departments and our community partners and to expand in-person service delivery to ensure California\u2019s farmworkers have access to state services, protections, and critical resources.<\/p>\n

Strengthening service through cultural competency
\n\"RSEP<\/p>\n

Group photo from Cultural Competency Training.<\/p>\n

In February, the first regional Cultural Competency Training for Indigenous Farmworker Engagement was held in Monterey County. As a follow-up to a statewide training in September, this Central Coast regional training brought together teams from the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB), Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), and Employment Development Department (EDD) to deepen their understanding and sharpen the skills needed to engage respectfully and effectively with California\u2019s diverse farmworker communities. Participants also collaborated on strategies to apply these learnings to their work.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis training is a critical step in building the trust and understanding necessary to truly serve California\u2019s farmworkers,\u201d said California Labor Secretary Stewart Knox. \u201cStrengthening our staff\u2019s cultural competency and coordination between LWDA\u2019s departments, we are ensuring that farmworkers can access state services and protections, regardless of their background or location.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Stewart<\/p>\n

LWDA Secretary Stewart Knox speaking to participants at the Cultural Competency Training.<\/p>\n

The training curriculum was developed with partner organizations including the UCLA Labor Center, Centro Binacional para el Desarrollo Ind\u00edgena Oaxaque\u00f1o (CBDIO), Mixteco\/Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP), and California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. The training examines the unique challenges indigenous farmworkers face.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndigenous farmworkers make up a third of California\u2019s agricultural workforce. This training deepened our staff \u2018s knowledge of their histories, languages, and challenges they face in the workplace. By bringing our staff together on a regional basis, we are building their ability to coordinate on a local level to better serve indigenous farmworkers in the Central Coast.\u201d \u2014 LWDA Deputy Secretary of Agriculture & Immigrant Workforce Sebasti\u00e1n S\u00e1nchez<\/p>\n

Bringing services directly to farmworker communities<\/p>\n

In parallel with staff training, RSEP continues to provide one-stop \u201cno wrong door\u201d clinics, including a clinic last month in Salinas. Outreach staff from LWDA, EDD, DIR (including Cal\/OSHA and the Labor Commissioner\u2019s Office), and the ALRB offered farmworkers direct access to state assistance and protection information. \u201cRSEP clinics offer farmworkers and their families a vital and safe space to address issues such as unsafe working conditions, unpaid wages, and other labor concerns,\u201d said Secretary Knox after observing the Salinas clinic. At the clinic, immigration and employment legal service providers are also present to provide consultation to workers on their options.<\/p>\n

\"California<\/p>\n

California Labor Commissioner Lilia Garc\u00eda-Brower presenting to farmworkers at the RSEP Clinic.<\/p>\n

Cultural competency trainings and the ongoing RSEP clinics underscore California\u2019s commitment to ensuring farmworkers and their families are supported and protected. Through enhanced department and agency coordination, strong community partnerships, and expanded in-person service delivery, RSEP is fundamentally improving how state government serves this essential workforce.<\/p>\n

\"RSEP<\/p>\n

Group photos of partners from the RSEP clinic.<\/p>\n

Learn more about RSEP<\/p>\n

Further information about the RSEP can be found on the newly launched RSEP webpage<\/a> on the LWDA website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Farmworker Awareness Week\u00a0 Blog post: March 27, 2026 California is deepening its ongoing commitment to the farmworkers who…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":239811,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[7,9,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-239810","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-california","8":"tag-california","9":"tag-california-headlines","10":"tag-california-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=239810"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239810\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/239811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=239810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=239810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=239810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}