Posts Tagged: labor
Abusive Conduct Policy updates, required training
Colleagues,
We recently announced the new Presidential Policy on Abusive Conduct in the Workplace to provide UC ANR employees notice of the new policy, procedures and training requirements. The Abusive Conduct Policy covers abusive conduct and retaliation by and against members of the university community in the workplace. The policy prohibits retaliation against any person who, in good faith, reports abusive conduct, assists someone with a report of abusive conduct, or participates in an investigation or other process under the policy.
The new UC Abusive Conduct in the Workplace training materials have now been released (DA-UCLOL0075-ECO). If you did not receive an email with the required training, please reach out to humanresources@ucanr.edu. This training is required training for all employees and must be completed in the UC Learning Center within 90 days.
How to Reach Us:
UC ANR Employee and Labor Relations will coordinate complaints of abusive conduct for both academic and staff through this confidential email address: anr-abusive-conduct@ucanr.edu.
In addition, for confidential support if abusive conduct has been experienced, the following offices are good places to start:
- Harassment, Discrimination and Complaint Program (HDAPP) - supports the University's commitment to a harassment and discrimination-free work and learning environments for all members of the community by supporting prevention, assisting resolve conflict and caring for employee concerns.
- Ombuds Office – The Ombuds Office is a confidential, independent, impartial, and informal problem-solving and conflict management resource for all members of the UC Davis, UC Davis Health and UC ANR communities.
- Academic and Staff Assistance Program (ASAP) - The Academic and Staff Assistance Program offers confidential, cost-free assessment, intervention, consultation and referral services to all UC ANR employees and their immediate families.
- Center for Advocacy, Resources & Education (CARE) – If you or someone close to you has experienced sexual harassment or any form of sexual violence, CARE advocates can provide confidential help with processing emotions, going over reporting options, resource referral and more.
- Confidential Whistleblower Reports and Complaints – UC ANR provides several straightforward and uncomplicated ways by which UC ANR employees can anonymously and confidentially.
For additional information, please contact Ian Smith at ljsmith@ucanr.edu or anr-abusive-conduct@ucanr.edu or view the full text of the Presidential Policy on Abusive Conduct in the Workplace, including the Frequently Asked Questions, available on the UCOP website.
No Labor Day Holiday for Honey Bees
On Labor Day, a federal holiday, we celebrate the our country's labor movement, our gratitude, and...
Worker bees are aptly named. They comprise most of the bees in the colony and do most of the work. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
This aging worker bee is all tattered and torn. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Foraging can be dangerous. Here a praying mantis has just nabbed a worker bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A crab spider feeding on a honey bee. Crab spiders are ambush predators. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Machines can help wine grape industry survive labor shortage
Wine grape growers in California and elsewhere face increasing labor costs and severe labor shortages, making it difficult to manage and harvest a vineyard while maintaining profitability. Growers are increasingly turning to machines for pruning, canopy management and harvesting, but how well these practices are executed can substantially affect yield and quality. A new review by researchers at the University of California, Davis, published in the journal Catalyst, provides guidelines for growers to make the best use of machines.
“Wine grape laborers have been virtually nonexistent. People don't want to work in vineyards anymore because it's remote, tough work,” said Kaan Kurtural, UC Davis professor of viticulture andenology andUC Cooperative Extension specialist. “There is now machinery available to do everything without touching a vineyard.”
Kurtural has designed a “touchless” experimental vineyard at the UC Davis Oakville Station to help growers understand how machines can help them cope with the labor shortage. While machines reduce the need for seasonal manual labor, they do not eliminate it. The degree of labor reduction depends on growing region, grapevine type and the number of practices growers mechanize.
The review provides guidance on using machines for winter pruning, canopy management and harvesting as well as how to design a grape vineyard for machines before planting. Videos showing the operation of different types of machinery and practices can also be found in the review.
Economic savings, quality grapes
About 90% of the wine grapes crushed in the U.S. are mechanically harvested. Previous studies have found about a 50% savings in labor costs from using machines to harvest instead of hand harvesting.
“Using more mechanization in a vineyard beyond just harvesting can also reduce labor costs without affecting grape quality.” Kurtural said.
Mechanical pruning, for example, can save between 60% to 80% of labor operation costs per acre compared to manual pruning alone. One experiment in the San Joaquin Valley, where more than 50% of California's wine grapes are grown, also showed using mechanical canopy management machines to manage merlot grapes resulted in twice the amount of color. The more color, or higher anthocyanin concentrations, the better the quality. It can significantly improve returns from vineyards in California's heartland.
Kurtural said there are machines available to manage canopies, including machines for leaf removal, shoot thinning and trunk suckering. Kurtural noted that the machines are American made, developed by researchers at the University of Arkansas and commercialized by manufacturers in Fresno and Woodland, California.
The review was co-authored by Matthew Fidelibus, UC Cooperative Extension viticulture specialist at UC Davis, based at UC Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center. Financial support for the research came from the American Vineyard Foundation and Bronco Wine Company.
Original post at https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/machines-can-help-wine-grape-industry-survive-labor-shortage.
Happy Labor Day from a Gulf Fritillary
Happy Labor Day! And what an appropriate time to post an image of a...
A Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae, laying an egg on Labor Day weekend in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Laborious Honey Bee
Today is Labor Day 2019, a federal holiday celebrated the first Monday of September. However, "the...
A worker honey bee forages on a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia) in the magic hour, the hour before sunset. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Illuminated by the late afternoon sun, the worker bee prepares to fly to another Tithonia blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A worker bee takes flight, lifting over a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)