IMMOKALEE, FL. — For farmworkers in southwest Florida — social distancing is not an option.
Many of the workers travel in packed buses from Collier County to fields near the towns of Arcadia in DeSoto County and Palmetto in Bradenton county.
"Some of the places take an hour, an hour and a half, to two hours to get to, and they're on the bus without masks and gloves," says Lupe Gonzalo.
Gonzalo is with The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), a worker-based human rights organization fighting human trafficking and gender-based violence at work.
CIW leaders have been at the forefront of educating workers and pushing for protections.
Gonzalo says the group has given out roughly 10,000 masks, but they've also been calling on the state to provide aid.
"Being essential-workers, we wanted to make sure we had the needed resources to protect our community," said Gonzalo.
Nearly a month after CIW sent a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis urging him to send help, this week, DeSantis announced he is deploying the Florida National Guard to Immokalee to provide COVID-19 testing.
CIW also launched an online petition on change.org; it now has over 37,000 signatures.
"I think it's a crucial step, a really big achievement for us because it felt like, as essential-workers, we were forgotten," said Gonzalo.
The Florida National Guard will begin testing on Sunday, starting at 11 a.m at the Department of Health building in Immokalee.
While Gonzalo says this is a step in the right direction, she says there is still more that needs to be done.
"We can't say ok that's it, there's still more needed. What happens when workers test positive, where will they go," said Gonzalo.
In the letter to Gov. DeSantis, CIW is also requesting the state plans for a field hospital or other medical care site in Immokalee.
Gonzalo says with many of the workers live in overcrowded housing, so self-isolation is not an option, they need an accessible place to isolate.
CIW also says it'll need the state's help to get more protective gear for the workers.
In the meantime, organizers are making communication a priority – for everyone.
"It's important to us to keep informing the community; we know businesses are starting to reopen, so we continue to push for people to take the proper precautions, practice social distancing and wear masks," said Gonzalo.
FOX 4 did reach out to the Governor's office and Collier County for comment; we are waiting for a response.
