March 15, 2021

Ag Employers Urged to Submit Survey to Sign Up for Vaccinations for Your Migrant Farm Workers & Other Employees

In the attached letter, NJ Secretary of Agriculture Doug Fisher encourages you to participate in a brief online survey to sign up your farmworkers for COVID-19 vaccinations. As stated, once your information is received by the Department of Health, it will be routed to a local Health official who will contact you to schedule vaccinations on your farm or at a standing location. Please complete the survey by March 23, 2021.

Sign up for the opportunity to get your workforce vaccinated against COVID-19!

Dear Agricultural Employer:

Effective March 15, 2021, migrant farm workers are eligible to receive the vaccine. In an effort to help migrant farm workers access the vaccine and continue to support the agriculture industry and food chain in New Jersey, an agricultural vaccine program is being created to partner farms with Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) to help vaccinate you and your workforce.

If your business participates, all adults aged 18 years or older who live or work on the farm will be eligible to receive the Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccine, administered by FQHCs. If you are interested in joining a vaccination program tailored to the needs of the agricultural community, please sign up at http://healthsurveys.nj.gov/NoviSurvey/n/zz2jr.aspx. Since interest is quite high, we ask that you complete the survey by Tuesday, March 23, 2021.

Outside of this dedicated agricultural vaccine program, effective March 29, 2021, you and your non-migrant workforce are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Questions you may have about the vaccine and COVID-19:

  • Can I lift mask-wearing and other health and safety protocols/mandates at my business, where my workers live on-site, or in group transportation once my entire workforce has been vaccinated?
    ➢ No. Vaccines are only an additional layer of protection. Employers and their workers need to continue to follow health and safety protocols as currently mandated by the state. Information on protocols currently in place is available at https://covid19.nj.gov/faqs/nj-information/slowing-the-spread/where-can-i-find-guidance-on-best-practices-to-maintain-the-health-and-safety-of-seasonal-farmworkers-what-rules-are-in-place-and-what-resources-are-available 
  • Is the vaccine safe and which vaccine will my workforce, my family and I be receiving?
    ➢ Yes, the vaccine is safe. The vaccine which will be offered is the single-dose COVID19 vaccine developed by the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson (J&J), to prevent COVID-19 in individuals 18 years of age and older. The J&J vaccine is the state’s first choice for the agricultural community because it only requires administration of a single-dose, and it can also be stored at refrigerator temperature thus making it possible to bring the vaccine to the farms reliably. In addition, it is important we create immunity rapidly in settings where workers, such as migrant workers, live in congregate housing, rely on group transportation and work in close proximity to one another. Learn more about the different vaccines at https://covid19.nj.gov/faqs/nj-information/slowing-the-spread/how-do-covid-19-vaccines-work#direct-link
  • Can I require my workforce to get the COVID-19 vaccine in order to seek employment with me?
    ➢ Yes. An employer can require that an employee receive the COVID-19 vaccine in order to return to the workplace, unless the employee cannot get the vaccine because of a disability, because their doctor has advised them not to get the vaccine while pregnant or breastfeeding, or because of a sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance.

  • Do I need to participate in this agricultural vaccine program in order to personally receive a vaccine?
    ➢ No. The agricultural vaccine program is being set up to support access to the vaccine for your agricultural workforce, especially your migrant workforce which will face challenges accessing the vaccine otherwise. Your business is strongly encouraged to participate to help your workers become vaccinated and you too can get vaccinated through an FQHC. However, once you are personally eligible to receive the vaccine, you can alternatively choose to book your individual vaccine appointment on your own through the State-run NJ Vaccine Scheduling System or directly with any of the vaccination locations throughout the state. You can learn more about appointment scheduling at https://covid19.nj.gov/pages/vaccine.
  • Can my employees use paid sick leave to get their vaccine?
    ➢ Yes. Under NJ state law, employers must provide up to 40 hours of paid Earned Sick Leave to their full- and part-time employees, including migrant and seasonal employees. Employees can use their earned sick leave to get vaccinated for COVID19. Learn more about New Jersey’s earned sick leave law at
    https://www.nj.gov/labor/worker-protections/earnedsick/law.shtml
Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
March 1, 2021

Governor Murphy Announces Expansion of Eligibility for New Jersey’s COVID-19 Vaccination Program

Secretary Fisher would like to share the following Press Release from Governor Murphy regarding the vaccination of farmworkers.

“A healthy workforce is of critical importance for agriculture and the food industry supply chain,” said New Jersey Department of Agriculture Secretary Douglas H. Fisher. “We appreciate that Governor Murphy has prioritized the vaccination of our essential farmworkers as we ramp up for New Jersey’s growing season.”

Governor Murphy Announces Expansion of Eligibility for New Jersey’s COVID-19 Vaccination Program

Expansion Includes Educators, Childcare Workers, Transportation Workers, and Other Frontline Essential Workers and High-Risk Groups

TRENTON – Governor Murphy today announced the expansion of eligibility for more frontline essential workers and high-risk groups in New Jersey’s COVID-19 vaccination program. Eligible groups include educators and staff in pre-k through 12th grade settings, childcare workers, and transportation workers, among others.

“Our administration has built the infrastructure – including nearly 300 vaccination sites across the state – needed to support New Jersey’s COVID-19 vaccination demand,” said Governor Murphy. “As the federal government continues to make more vaccine doses available, we are confident in our ability to expand our vaccination program to reach more of our essential workers and vulnerable populations. Our goal is to provide every New Jerseyan with a vaccine when it is available and they are eligible.”

“As vaccine supply increases, this phased expansion of new eligibility groups keeps New Jersey moving forward toward our goal of vaccinating 70 percent of the eligible adult population,” said New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli.

Beginning Monday, March 15, the following categories are eligible for vaccination:

  • Educators, including support staff, in pre-K through 12th grade settings;
  • Childcare workers in licensed and registered settings;
  • Public and local transportation workers, including bus, taxi, rideshare, and airport employees; NJ TRANSIT workers; and Motor Vehicle Commission staff;
  • Public safety workers who are not sworn law enforcement or fire professionals, including probation officers and fire safety inspectors;
  • Migrant farm workers;
  • Members of tribal communities; and,
  • Individuals experiencing homelessness and those living in shelters, including domestic violence shelters.

Additionally, beginning on Monday, March 29, frontline essential workers in the following categories are also eligible for vaccination:

  • Food production, agriculture, and food distribution;
  • Eldercare and support;
  • Warehousing and logistics;
  • Social services support staff;
  • Elections personnel;
  • Hospitality;
  • Medical supply chain;
  • Postal and shipping services;
  • Clergy; and,
  • Judicial system.

Additionally, the eligibility list will indicate that all individuals ages 16-64 with certain medical conditions, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), that increase the risk or might increase the risk of severe illness from the virus, are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccination.

For more information about eligibility, statewide vaccination site locations, and to preregister for a vaccination, visit https://covid19.nj.gov/vaccine

For more information on CDC criteria for eligibility, please click here. 

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September 22, 2020

Farm Worker Housing Simulator Shows How To Help Reduce COVID-19 Spread

Partnering with the Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety (NEC), the Vessel Dynamics Laboratory at George Mason University created an online app that shows how various practices aimed to slow the spread of COVID-19 among farm workers in shared housing can work.

Room for Improvement:  An Online Tool for Reducing the Spread of COVID-19 in Farmworker Housing allows you to put in information about your on-farm housing and it will show how coronavirus can spread through farmworker housing. You can change the size of the room, type of beds, number of workers housed, and a variety of preventative practices to see the impact on spread of the disease.

The simulator is available at https://vesseldynamics.com/research/farmworker-housing-simulator/. (Note that the simulator works best in Google Chrome.)

More information about farmworker safety programs from the NEC are available at https://www.necenter.org/.

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August 12, 2020

Additional “Guidance and Compliance Assistance on Farmworker Safety & Pay During the Pandemic” Offered by US Dept of Labor – Wage & Hour

The following message was shared by Shavonne Person, Community Outreach & Resource Planning Specialist (CORPS), and Steven Risko, Assistant District Director, U.S. Department of Labor – Wage & Hour Division, Southern New Jersey District Office in Lawrenceville:

“The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division enforces some of our nation’s most comprehensive labor laws for agricultural workers, [Read more…]

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July 22, 2020

NYCAMH/NEC Farmworker Needs Assessment Survey

The New York Center for Agricultural Medicine & Health/Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety in Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing based in Cooperstown, NY is conducting a farm worker health needs assessment to help them better address worker health and safety needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. [Read more…]

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July 21, 2020

Don’t Let Your Guard Down With Farm Worker Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical, indeed essential, role of farm labor in getting food from farm to plate. However, health concerns should not stop with a negative COVID test, especially if an employee or family member is exhibiting any of the ‘flu-like’ symptoms that are associated with corona virus.

A recent farm call was a reminder that working outside, especially during this July heat wave, exposes workers to a number of potential health risks that may present very similar symptoms and can be equally health, and even life, threatening. Recently published studies from the Rutgers Institute of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences suggest growing numbers of people worldwide are at risk of heat stress and related complications, including farmers and ag laborers working in high heat and humid conditions.

Harvesting and other activities along field edges, including going into the woods instead of using a portable bathroom facilities, also lead to a high risk of tick bites, which can also carry a number of diseases, many as or more debilitating than Lyme disease that most are now aware of. A recent story at Today.com suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic might lead to more tick-borne disease this year, quoting Rutgers entomologist and assistant professor Alvaro Toledo at the Center for Vector Biology with suggestions how to prevent tick bites.

It is critical for your employees’ health and well-being to get proper diagnosis and treatment for all of these ailments. This table illustrates how many tick-born diseases, as well as heat stress, all have potential symptoms very similar to those of COVID-19. Each is linked to additional resources at the CDC. In many cases, it may be the ‘other symptoms’ that may be unique to each disease and assist a medical practitioner with correct identification and lead to better verification with further testing.

   Disease    >

Symptoms  v

 COVID-19 Heat Stress Lyme Disease Ehrlichiosis Babe- biosis Powas-san Rocky Mtn Spotted Fever
Vector* Human Black-legged Tick (a.k.a. Deer Tick) (I. scapularis) Lone Star Tick (A. americanum) & Black-legged Black-legged Tick Ground hog(I. cookei), Squirrel (I. marxi) & Black-legged Ticks American Dog Tick (D. variabilis)
Fever or chills X X X X X X X
Cough X X
Shortness of breath/difficulty breathing X
Fatigue X X X X
Muscle/body aches X X X X X X
Headache X X X X X X X
New loss of taste or smell X
Sore throat X
Congestion or runny nose X
Nausea/vomiting X X X X X X X
Diarrhea X X
Rash X X X
Other symptoms X X X X X X
Potentially Deadly/Disabling
 X X X X X X X

*NOTE – main vector listed, but many tick born diseases may be vectored by other species of ticks, or different species causing same disease may be carried by different tick species.

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