Agriculture Workforce Development Conference
More than 500 agricultural safety and HR professionals, farm managers and supervisors, labor contractors, and farm owners converged on the
Hyatt Regency in Monterey
February 20-22, 2024, for ACTIVATE24, hosted by AgSafe.
This is a one-of-akind, annual conference, focused on the industry’s most vital resource, its people. With more than 50 sessions offered in English and Spanish, the conference covered a wide range of critical topics from the fundamentals of health and safety — such as mental workplace health and compliance planning — to regulatory compliance, workforce development, and pesticide handling. Theresa Kiehn,
AgSafe President and
CEO said, “Special emphasis is given to providing practical information, solutions, resources and professional development for agricultural supervisors, safety and human resources professionals and executives alike. The value for attendees is significant.”
AgSafe, a non-profit membership organization, is the leader in educational training for the agricultural community. AgSafe’s
focus is to provide practical education, with a “boots on the ground” approach, teaching both the “why” and “how” to protect workers in the field, as well as packing, processing and food manufacturing facilities.
In addition to the main conference program, developed with input from industry professionals, supplemental seminars were offered to Train-the-Trainers in
Tractor Safety and Pesticide
Handling. Premium tracks were also available for the
California Human Resources
Certificate Program, California
Agricultural Safety
Certificate Program, and
Supervisor Advancement
Seminar. FLC Continuing
Education was also available.
Marshal Sewell, who grew up on a fifth-generation fruit and vegetable farm and is the founder of
Mind Your Melon (https:// mindyourmelon.org/), provided keynote remarks on the stressors in agricultural communities and on
Inspiring Healthier Minds
Through Proactive Lifestyles.
Tina Huff, Ph.D., SHRMSCP
presented the Plenary
Session to help every employee be successful at work – helping companies reach and exceed their goals. She is a former Chief
People Officer / Vice President
of Human Resources with over 30 years of experience across multiple industries including agriculture, contact centers, food processing, hospitality, manufacturing, and retail/grocery.
Winners of the annual
AllWays Safe Agricultural
Safety Awards were also unveiled at ACTIVATE24.
A collaboration between
AgSafe and the Almond
Board of California, this award is designed to honor businesses and individuals who have committed themselves to ensuring the safety and health of their workers. Awards were presented in the categories of lifetime achievement, outstanding company, safety professional, and operations/production supervisor.
For more information and to view the list of award winners, visit https://agsafe.org/activate24/.
AgSafe, a 501(C)3 non-profit organization, is the educational leader
Since 1991 AgSafe has trained over 100,000 employers, supervisors, and farm workers in the most critical issues impacting worker safety, human resources, and pesticide safety.