[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 160 (Tuesday, October 17, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S15234-S15235]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN:
  S. 1326. A bill respecting the relationship between workers' 
compensation benefits and the benefits available under the Migrant and 
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act; to the Committee on Labor 
and Human Resources.


 the migrant and seasonal agricultural worker protection act amendment 
                              act of 1995

 Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I introduce legislation that 
would overturn a 1990 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Adams Fruit Co. 
versus Barrett and restore workers' compensation as the exclusive 
remedy for loss under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker 
Protection Act where a State workers' compensation law is applicable 
and coverage is provided.
  This legislation embodies an agreement worked out by the National 
Council of Agricultural Employers and the Farmworkers Justice Fund and 
other farm worker advocacy groups. In the House this compromise will be 
offered as a substitute amendment to H.R. 1715, sponsored by 
Congressmen Goodling, Fazio and others.
  By way of background, in 1985, 19 migrant farmworkers employed by the 
Adams Fruit Co. suffered injuries in an accident while they traveled to 
work in an Adams Fruit van. The company was found liable and the 
injured farmworkers were awarded damages to the fullest extent under 
Florida's workers' compensation system. In addition, 10 of the workers 
filed suit against Adams Fruit for motor safety violations under the 
Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.
  In the Adams Fruit decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the 
injured farmworkers could bring an action for damages under the Migrant 
and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act even though they were 
covered under State workers' compensation for the same injuries. In so 
ruling, the court disregarded one of the basic concepts of workers' 
compensation, the assurance of a prompt remedy in exchange for limited 
liability on the part of the employer. As a result, agricultural 
employers who pay the cost of workers' compensation for farmworkers are 
not receiving the protection from lawsuits that all other employers 
providing workers' compensation receive.
  The legislation I am introducing today would reverse the effects of 
the Adams Fruit decision and restore the exclusivity of workers' 
compensation. Specifically, the bill:
  Amends the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act to 
provide that where workers' compensation coverage is provided under a 
State workers' compensation law for a migrant or seasonal agricultural 
worker, workers' compensation will be the farmworker's exclusive remedy 
and the employer's sole liability under the act for bodily injury or 
death;
  Provides for increased statutory damages under the Migrant and 
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act in cases where actual 
damages are precluded because the worker's injury is covered under a 
State workers' compensation law and the court finds the defendant's 
actions meet certain criteria set forth in the legislation, such as the 
defendant knowingly permitting a driver to drive farmworkers while 
under the influence of alcohol;
  Provides for tolling of the statute of limitations on actions brought 
under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act 
during the period of time a claim under a State workers' compensation 
law is pending;
  Requires disclosure of information regarding workers' compensation 
coverage to migrant farmworkers and upon request to seasonal 
farmworkers, 

[[Page S 15235]]
helping ensure that farmworkers have adequate information to file 
timely claims for workers' compensation; and
  Allows the Secretary of Labor to determine the appropriate level of 
liability insurance required by employers engaged in transporting 
farmworkers, helping increase the ability of persons to obtain 
insurance.
  Mr. President, the appropriate relationship between workers' 
compensation benefits and benefits available under the Migrant and 
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act has been debated at great 
length since the Adams Fruit decision. Many have tried to reconcile the 
legitimate interests of both agricultural employers and farmworkers in 
this issue. In the 102d Congress I sponsored legislation, and I worked 
very hard, meeting with representatives of agriculture from around the 
Nation, with representatives of farmworkers, with Congressman Fazio, 
with Congressman Berman and others, in an effort to achieve consensus. 
I am pleased to say that there is now agreement. I hope the Senate will 
be able to move quickly to approve this agreement and pass this 
legislation.
                                 ______