Gov. Katie Hobbs has proclaimed Aug. 22 as Farmworkers Day in Arizona, marking 60 years since the organization that became the United Farm Workers was founded.
The date traces back to Aug. 22, 1966, when the National Farm Workers Association and Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee joined to create the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee, according to the proclamation. It was later renamed the United Farm Workers of America.
Both groups organized agricultural workers and advocated for better pay and working conditions.
Hobbs recognized the work farmworkers do across Arizona, including in Yuma County, one of the nation's major producers of winter leafy greens.
The proclamation also notes decades of farmworker marches, boycotts and other organizing efforts for better pay, safer working conditions and the right to organize.
It cites the 1972 Agricultural Employment Relations Act, which created the Arizona Agricultural Employment Relations Board to handle organizing, collective bargaining and labor disputes involving farmworkers.
Hobbs signed the proclamation Aug. 21, officially designating Aug. 22, 2026, as Farmworkers Day in Arizona.
César Chávez was one of the founders of the United Farm Workers, along with Dolores Huerta.
The designation comes nearly five months after Hobbs signed legislation removing César Chávez Day from state law, following allegations that the late labor leader sexually assaulted and raped women involved in the farmworker movement.
At the time, Hobbs said she was working with community leaders to find "meaningful ways to honor and celebrate our farmworker community and their continued contributions to the state of Arizona."
Rey Covarrubias Jr. is a reporter for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Email him at: [email protected], and connect with him on Instagram, Threads, Bluesky and X (formerly Twitter) at @ReyCJrAZ.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona marks Farmworkers Day 60 years after UFW founding