USA WHERE FARM OWNERS ARE FACING ACUTE SHORTAGE OF WORKERS WHICH CONSTITUTES 50% OF MIGRANT LABOR URGING GOVT TO INTRODUCE BLUE CARD FOR THEM TO ENABLE THEM WORK LEGALLY IN THE COUNTRY AS SOME FARM OWNERS HAVING FARM AREA MORE THAN 2500 ACRES IN THE COUNTRY 11TH JANUARY 2014 But the talk also was about farming. And one problem farmers in Pennsylvania face is a shortage of labor. Farmers have experienced great difficulty in attracting farm workers for years. The work can be demanding, the conditions can be brutal and wages tend to be low, although not as low as some think. At an Ag Issues forum sponsored by the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce and Industry last February, U.S. Department of Agriculture economist Tom Hertz said farm wages in 2012 averaged just under $11 per hour, and Wenger Feeds CEO Jim Adams recounted that a Washington apple grower was willing to pay apple pickers $150 a day, but had a hard time attracting workers. The issue is again at the forefront as Congress looks at immigration reform. Although the U.S. Senate approved an immigration reform bill last year, the House failed to act on it. But in December, House Speaker John Boehner said immigration reform would be a priority. Many Pennsylvania farms use immigrant labor. Tony Brubaker of Mount Joys Brubaker Farms has said that Immigrants are essential laborers in the agricultural community. Fruit and vegetable operations use immigrant labor. Foreign workers can obtain guest worker visas. Unlike seasonal agricultural producers, however, the dairy industry has not been able to benefit from guest worker programs, which exclude year-round immigrant employees. A 2009 National Milk Producers Federation survey found that of 5,005 dairy farms in 47 states, at least 50 percent used migrant labor. Kreider Farms of Manheim, a 2,500-acre, 1,500-cow dairy operation, uses immigrant labor. But a 2011 audit of the companys worker verification forms by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security forced the company to let go of 109 employees whose documentation was questionable. Kreider Farms, which was not fined for the violations, has since put a new system in place to screen workers. The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau supports Senate Bill 744, which would offer 11 million undocumented foreigners a path to citizenship. It would eliminate the current guest-worker program, which is overly bureaucratic and does not provide year-round work status. The proposal calls for the creation of a new Blue Card for immigrant agriculture workers who are already here illegally that would grant them legal status. The House version is different, but shares many of the same goals. Lawmakers claim immigration reform is a priority. The longer the delay acting on a bill, the harder it is for American farmers — including Pennsylvania farmers — to compete in world markets.
Posted on: Sat, 18 Jan 2014 02:18:30 +0000
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