WCTV (Tallahassee, Florida)

November 9, 2009

Mushroom Farm Workers Rally At Quincy Courthouse

Reporter:  Lauren Searcy

Mushroom farm workers at Florida Prime are scared their jobs will be lost if help from the government doesn't come soon. Now they are rallying at the courthouse in Quincy to beg for help.

“We want to work! We want to work!"

The chants of struggling workers rang loud through downtown Quincy.

They are out in full force, begging for financial support to keep their company from going under.

Florida Prime is the company that's working out of the old Quincy Farms facility. But the economy has put a strain on business, and now some workers fear the end is coming.

"This plant is over 200 employees and we do need to save our jobs," said Cisel Fuentes, a Florida Prime worker.

Even children came out to show their support, proving that job loss not only affects the workers, but their little ones too.

"People have families, we've got to eat, support, we've got bills to pay. So right now we need all the help we can get," said Thomas Davis, a Florida Prime worker.

Currently, they are rallying locally for that help, but they may soon take their cries to the steps of the capital.

Even though the company is based in Gadsden County, workers believe its benefits could stretch much further.

"Leon, Calhoun, Jackson. It would support the economy in all the surrounding counties. We need to work. There's no jobs out there and this place has the potential to open up a lot of jobs," Clara Davis, a Florida Prime worker.

Jobs that could be lost if help doesn't come soon.