Ag Labor: An Old Challenge with New Wrinkles
April 28, 2017 The story of the agricultural labor shortage is not new. Most everyone in the industry knows it’s impossible to grow fruit without the direct help of a large agriculture workforce to maintain and harvest it.
“This is bar none the issue that keeps the industry awake at night,” says Diane Kurrle, Senior Vice President of the U.S. Apple Association.
There are an estimated 1.5 million seasonal workers involved in labor-intensive agriculture, which includes specialty crops. While it seems immigration enforcement is talked about more than reform, those in agriculture know the truth — without immigration and guest worker reform, the labor crisis is not going to end.
“We’ve been hearing frustrations about ag labor availability for a long time,” says Jason Resnick, Vice President and General Counsel at Western Growers. “There have been labor shortages consistently for a number of years and we hear on average anecdotally, 20% minimum labor shortages or higher.”
Frustrations are running high among growers who hoped to have ag labor reform be a possibility. Currently, the administration has focused on enforcement and not reform.
“One of the concerns is that while labor is already short, we might see less movement of migrant workers than normal,” says Frank Gasperini Jr., Executive Vice President of National Council of Agricultural Employers.
While the challenge remains the same, many in the industry see opportunities to move the need for a reliable stream of ag labor to the forefront of the new administration.
The Challenge
Growers in the past have relied on temporary workers who would follow the crop seasons north. Some say that isn’t happening this year. For Mark Nicholson of Red Jacket Orchards in Geneva, NY, his apple crop competes for labor with vineyards in the Finger Lakes. He said he was struggling to get his pruning crews up and going.
“There doesn’t seem to be folks coming across the border to work or from southern regions at this point,” he says. “We’re facing probably our most severe shortage that we’ve ever experienced, already starting this season.”
Kerry Scott, Program Manager of MAS Labor, attributes some of the migration issues due to the stability of year-round employment in warm-climate states such as California. He said a lot of the Hispanic farmworkers that were given amnesty by President Reagan in the 1980s are also hanging up their hats.
“Their kids are now doctors, and lawyers, they’re no longer doing entry-level farm work and that’s the beginning of the shortage,” he says.
And it seems unlikely that a similar influx of workers will occur in the future.
While some outside of politics and agriculture believe the answer to the ag labor shortage is simply raising wages, those in agriculture know that notion is a fallacy. In fact, Resnick says raising wages will just lead to more problems.
“You’re not going to bring in any new workers into the labor pool, you’re just going to cannibalize the existing workforce,” he says.
The Current Solution
Nicholson, who struggled to staff his early season orchard tasks, opted to submit an H-2A application to bring in about half the workers he’ll need for harvest.
Most growers who have experience with the H-2A program understand it’s not an easy program to use. The steps necessary to complete an application are frustrating and there can be delays in getting workers on time, often due to processing delays.
“It’s a complex process and it’s expensive,” Scott says. “No one does it because it is fun or cheap, but it is going to allow you to stay in business.”
Many growers liken the H-2A program to having insurance — having the necessary labor to pick the crop when you need it.
“You’re insuring that you’re going to have the amount of labor necessary to pick the crop on time,” says Jon Wyss of Gebbers Farm in Brewster, WA. “It’s a very good insurance program to have.”
Kurrle says H-2A workers only account for about 20% of the ag workforce in the apple industry, which is slightly larger than the 10% of all ag that uses H-2A.
“Growers are increasingly turning to H-2A,” says Robert Guenther Senior Vice President, Public Policy for United Fresh Produce Association. “Its usage is expected to double within the next five years, further burdening an already severely strained system.”
While H-2A’s use is growing, the new administration has been slow to fill auxiliary positions within departments, and a hiring freeze also makes those who use the H-2A program nervous. Nicholson said that was one of the messages he and other growers brought to the attention of policymakers during USApple’s annual fly-in.
“We’re bringing the message that absent comprehensive reform the only way we’re going to get our labor is through the H-2A program,” he says. “They need to be acutely aware of what those problems are that we’ve faced in the past and be ready at a moment’s notice to go to our aid.”
Nicholson says growers were quick to point out to policymakers that Trump Winery in Charlottesville, VA, uses H-2A labor for vineyard tasks.
“We’re hopeful this administration would have a special understanding and interest in making the program work as effectively as it can,” he says.Looking Ahead
Most of those working on behalf of the specialty crop industry in Washington, DC, say relief is unlikely to come this year, but there may be an opportunity as soon as next year Gasperini says. He adds that it’s a good time to remind congressional representatives, who said nothing would happen until Republicans were the majority in the three branches, that the time to make good on their word is approaching.
Getting a consensus on immigration reform is very difficult. There have been attempts in the past, but nothing permanent.
“Immigration is one of those issues that when you add something to please two people, four people say they can’t support it anymore,” Kurrle says.
Scott and Wyss say there are opportunities to reform the H-2A program without full legislation enacted. Wyss says something as simple as guestworker housing to follow USDA standards instead of what is mandated through H-2A could open the opportunity for more growers to use the program.
Scott says, though, the organization in the H-2A office needs to become more accommodating to the program and the end user.
“They have the responsibility to be responsive instead of questioning [growers] and generally being obstructionist,” he says. “I will tell you that we’re optimistic with the new administration.”
H-2A reform is only one component of what those in the industry are hoping to accomplish in the next four years. While enforcement is a key talking point with the new administration, those in the produce industry says they will support enforcement as long as it follows real immigration and ag labor reform.
“Because of the number of workers in our industry who are foreign-born and not properly documented (estimates range from 50% to 80%) we are opposed to increased enforcement that is not done in conjunction with a guestworker program that ensures access to a legal workforce,” Guenther says.
United Fresh is looking for immigration reform proposals that provide a legal status for those undocumented workers, improve H-2A, do not enact enforcement without reform, and most importantly provide a future stream of workers, Guenther explains.
What You Can Do
Gasperini says for now, growers need to plan on the current system being in place for this year and next, at the least. So, what can you do, knowing the issue of ag labor availability is coming to a head? First, he says, get your paperwork in order.
“You have to be really fussy with records,” he says. “If and when the auditors come, your only defense is your records.”
Resnick suggests you consider ways to incentivize employees to stay on your farm aside from increasing pay.
“What is going to distinguish you from other employers? It’s not just paying higher wages, it’s perhaps providing health benefits, providing a retirement plan, providing subsided housing,” he says.
Another must is sharing your story about how you use ag labor and why it’s so important to your business and to your community. But, industry members suggest you expand your outreach to beyond just your representatives. Think about your friends, family, and community members. These representatives hear from their constituents, many of whom have no idea about the challenges you’re facing.
Think about everything that your farm needs — whether it’s equipment purchased from a local dealer, sprays and nutrition for your crops, bins, pallets, loans, insurance, on and on. Each of those have a direct impact on another local business. Workers support local restaurants, shops, and more in the local economy.
“[They] don’t even understand the impact of this is on their own community and [they] don’t understand if suddenly the workforce for the apple industry were to disappear overnight, the economic impact that it would have on them would hit the whole community, not just growers,” Kurrle says.
Guenther says, above all, you need to be more vocal.
“We’re going to need to ratchet up the intensity and assertiveness of our message,” he says. “Let them know that specialty crop labor needs must be part of any reform process.” ●
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