photo credit: Shandra Back
Karym Sanchez, lead organizer at the Graton Day Labor Center, speaks at the vigil.

April 28 is Workers Memorial Day, a day observed around the world to honor workers who were injured or killed on the job. Organizers say often in accidents that could have been prevented.

About fifteen workers and community members gathered Tuesday afternoon at the Graton Day Labor Center to hold a vigil and remember the lives lost on the job and recognize the people still living with the consequences of unsafe work.

Among them is 55‑year‑old Anita Noriega.

She opens a worn knee brace. The fabric is thinning, with holes exposing the denim underneath. She says she wears it every day. It’s been two years since the accident.

Noriega, an immigrant from Mexico, says she was working in a Sonoma County vineyard when she stepped into a trench hidden by tall grass and felt something tear in her knee. 

Some mornings, she says she can barely walk. Other days, she gets by.

But, Noriega says, she can’t do the physically-demanding work she once relied on. Still, she says she has to keep working.

"I'd rather protect my life than take that risk," she said about taking new jobs that may not be safe.

Noriega’s injury is one of the millions that happen each year on the job in the United States.

Immigrants — particularly undocumented workers — often take on some of the most dangerous jobs in the country, including agriculture.

In 2023, nearly six out of every 100,000 foreign‑born Latino workers died from workplace injuries. That’s almost double the rate for all U.S. workers, according to Institute for Policy Studies analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. 

At the Graton Day Labor Center, staff say they work closely with employers to ensure workers return home safely.

But many day laborers have shared that jobs are scarce,  and that they’re lucky to find something two to three days a week right now. Many have told KRCB News they’ll take what they can get to pay rent and keep their families fed.

The labor center says they’re always looking for new employers, now more than ever.