Nine protesters traveled to Ocala early Thursday morning at the grand opening of a Publix supermarket to rally against wages they say are unfair for farm workers.
The protesters, members of the Gainesville Interfaith Alliance for Immigrant Justice, attended the 7 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony and 8 a.m. grand opening of the Publix at 3305 SE Maricamp Road.
They left Gainesville at 5:30 a.m. and stayed in Ocala until 8:30 a.m.
They were protesting against the refusal of Publix officials to pay an increase for Florida tomatoes.
Representatives of the Immokalee farm workers, who harvest the tomatoes, have been negotiating with various corporations to raise the price of tomatoes by a penny per pound, said Kimberly Hunter, a co-founder of the Gainesville Interface Alliance for Immigrant Justice.
Publix has refused to pay the extra penny, Hunter said.
She said the slight increase would greatly improve the quality of life for the workers, who are currently paid 50 cents for a 32-pound bucket of tomatoes.
If Publix agreed to the increase, the workers' wages would increase for the first time since the 1980s, rising to 82 cents per bucket.
Hundreds of local residents came out for the store's grand opening.
The residents were surprised to see protesters and even more surprised to learn about the grocery chain's refusal to pay the extra penny, Hunter said.
"A lot of them had no idea what was going on," Hunter said. "They were surprised that Publix has refused for almost three years to sign something that less progressive organizations have signed years ago."
