Washington tulip grower, striking workers reach deal

MOUNT VERNON, Wash. (AP) — Workers at a large Washington tulip grower who went on strike two weeks ago over pay and better work conditions reached an agreement just before the official start of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival April 1. Cascadia Daily News reports workers left the tulip and daffodil fields for three days in March and made demands including work gloves, more bathrooms, larger bonuses and no more work off the clock. Edgar Franks, political director for the independent farmworker union Familias Unidas por la Justicia, said some of the demands were met in an agreement signed March 30, including bathrooms and the full recovery of lost wages for sick time due to pesticide exposure.