backstretch workers

It's a piece of legislation not introduced yet, but that didn't stop two industry leaders from discussing at last week's racing symposium in Arizona a proposed immigration change that could alter the way the sport's workforce seeks employment here legally. At the symposium, Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) CEO Lisa Lazarus reportedly discussed a plan to expand P Visas to include equine workers with a built-in funding mechanism for the organization, according to BloodHorse. Currently, the backstretch workforce falls under the umbrella of the Fair Labor Standards Act, limiting...

The Jockey Club of Canada plans to offer a new Outstanding Western Canadian Backstretch Worker Award which will be presented for the first time at the upcoming 51st annual Sovereign Awards ceremony, the organization said in a release on Friday. The new award will go along with the Outstanding Groom Award, which has been given in the past to a stablehand working in Ontario. The Backstretch Worker Award is open to those who hold a valid Thoroughbred license in the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and/or Manitoba. Click here to...

The Belmont Child Care Association, Inc. (BCCA) is once again rolling out its Annual Holiday Shopping Day on Saturday, Dec. 6, at Anna House located in Belmont Park, the organization said in a press release on Friday. Each year, more than 500 children from New York's Thoroughbred backstretch community experience a day filled with wonder and joy as they "shop" for gifts for their loved ones. Every item is brand new and no money is exchanged. The event is entirely free for families, which is made possible through donors, sponsors...

Backside, an observational documentary that honors the primarily immigrant workforce that helps sustain the horse racing industry, will be screened at the Speed Art Museum in Louisville. Filmed over five years by an all-LatinX team, Backside 'offers an intimate look at the lives of workers who begin their days before dawn, seven days a week, caring for some of the world's most prized racehorses' in the barns behind Churchill Downs—known as the "backside." According to a release, the documentary 'goes beyond the pageantry of the [Kentucky] Derby to reveal the...

John and Leona Velazquez were publicly recognized for their longstanding commitment to the backstretch community at Saratoga, Belmont and Aqueduct on Wednesday when they received the Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson Award from the New York Race Track Chaplaincy at the 18th annual fundraising brunch at the Saratoga National Golf Club, the non-profit said in a press release on Wednesday afternoon. On hand to assist with the award presentation was Marylou's Whitney's daughter, Heather Mabee. The brunch set a new record for fundraising. "Anyone who has spent much time around...

LOUISVILLE, KY-- Two months ago, trainer Dale Romans and California Horse Racing Board vice chairman Oscar Gonzales traveled to Washington, D.C. with the American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC) to join more than 150 business leaders in a push for bipartisan immigration reform. On Thursday, May 1 after training hours concluded at Churchill Downs, the pair participated in a media briefing to share their insights from the trip and explain why the group believes that now is the time to reform U.S. laws and regulations affecting legal immigrant workers. Around 20...

News this week out of the Maryland state legislature has mainly concerned lawmakers moving oversight of the rebuilding of Pimlico Racecourse (among other industry operations) from the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority (MTROA) to the Maryland Stadium Authority and the Maryland Economic Development Corporation. What garnered far less coverage was the successful passage of another bill that designates $250,000 annually for the next two fiscal years towards needed services for the backstretch staff living and working at Laurel Park. "I think this is unique," said Mary Kay Vavasour, who volunteers...

by Bill Finley and Dan Ross Throughout his campaign, President Donald Trump vowed to crack down on illegal immigrants, a promise he has kept during the first few weeks of his new administration. That has created much uncertainly on the backstretches of the nation's racetracks and at the horse farms spread across the country, both of which rely heavily on foreign labor. Should the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) set its sights on racing and start deporting backstretch employees that would mean a major crisis for a sport. A former...

Light Up Racing has launched a Spanish translation feature on their website with the intent to make resources even more accessible to the entire horse racing community, the organization said on Thursday in a press release. The Spanish version can be accessed by clicking the flag icon located in the top right corner of the screen on the website. By offering this option, Light Up aims to bridge language barriers across the industry. "At Light Up Racing, we're focused on empowering industry members to confidently engage in tough conversations," said...

The New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) and Steve Asmussen have entered into a negotiated agreement that will "adjourn" twice-postponed hearings that were supposed to have examined the Hall-of-Fame conditioner's fitness for owner and trainer licensure after the NYSGC raised concerns regarding Asmussen's pay practices involving backstretch workers. In exchange for the hearing being taken off the NYSGC's docket, the agency explained in a Nov. 12 press release, Asmussen must engage and pay for an independent monitor approved by the NYSGC who will provide quarterly written reports to the NYSGC...

The Backside Learning Center (BLC)--an independent non-profit organization providing support and resources for the diverse community of racetrack workers and their families at Churchill Downs--will hold its annual fundraiser, "Benefit for the Backside: A Day at the Races Celebrating the BLC's 20th Anniversary", at noon ET on Friday, Nov. 22 at the track's First Turn Club, the organization said via a Thursday release. All money raised through this annual event goes directly toward programming, resources and costs associated with the work of the BLC. Over its 20-year history, the BLC...

The Thoroughbred Education and Research Foundation (TERF) has awarded $10,000 to the Belmont Childcare Association, Inc. (BCCA) for their early childhood education program, the organization said in a release Thursday. The mission of the BCCA is to provide a safe, supportive and academically inspiring environment for the children of parents working in the Thoroughbred racing backstretch area located at NYRA's three tracks. BCCA has received funds from TERF over the last five years and will once again use the grant to prepare students for elementary school as they develop physically,...