The United Farm Workers (UFW) union will get a new president next month after Arturo Rodriguez, the current president, decided to relinquish the job after 25 years. Teresa Romero will be the third president of the UFW and the first ever female president of the organization. Rodriguez had been the president of the organization since 1993, when he took over after the sudden death of his father-in-law and UFW founder, Cesar Chavez. Rodriguez stated the following when asked why he is stepping down after so many years,
It’s a good time to step down because we are in a strong position.
Romero came to the United Stated in the 1980s from Mexico on a temporary visa. Romero eventfully became a U.S. citizen under the 1986 immigration bill signed by President Ronald Reagan. She rose through the ranks of the UFW and is currently the UFW’s secretary-treasurer and chief administrative officer. Romero will have to deal with several issues facing the UFW, including the fact that union membership is currently a fraction of what it was years ago. The greatest issue facing farmworkers today is comprehensive immigration reform. We will have to wait and see how the UFW does under the leadership of Romero.
