US: Farmers on Frontline of Immigration Battle
Miller: From one side of the country to the other, the nation’s fruit and vegetable farmers are feeling the heat over immigration reform. Without it, they basically have no chance of getting the new agriculture labor programs they desperately need.
Carr: Immigration reform right now is well overdue. We’ve needed it for over 12 years. So right now it is paramount for our industry. Not just my operation, but for all my peers that actually grow fruits and vegetables in this country.
Miller: Chalmers Carr is a South Carolina peach grower. He has used the current program called H-2A for years, but there are still times when he doesn’t get the workers he needs when he needs them.
Carr: We have to prove that we have a labor shortage, that there are not US workers able to do the jobs we have. Then we go through a certification process, the application process to get the workers over here. That can take 45 to 60 days. We put in our application; we go through all the interview process. We get the workers here. Hopefully there’s no hiccups along the way.
Miller: Doug Krahmer grows blueberries in Oregon. He and Carr agree that fruit and vegetable crops rely on foreign labor, because American’s just don’t want these jobs.
Krahmer: I don’t discriminate and we do advertise with the Oregon Employment Agency. We do hire high school kids. Currently we’re advertising locally in stores, laundromats, community centers in the local area and we also advertise through the employment division. The American workers, many of them don’t want to do this kind of work and I applaud those that do come out and work.
Carr: Currently my wage rate is $9.78 an hour and I have no US workers on this farm taking these jobs even though I’ve advertised. In the last 2 years we’ve advertised over 2,000 jobs. We’ve had about 600 US workers, so about one-third of our need, come out and apply for them, yet we’ve only had 15 take the job and stay on the job all the way through. So how can I pick these crops with 15 workers?
Miller: It’s just not possible, no matter what side of the country you’re on. If American’s want domestic fruit and vegetable options, they’re going to have to realize it takes foreign workers.
Source: fb.org
