NorCal Farmers: 'We Don't Have Enough Workers, Produce May Rot In Fields'

NBC11.com ^ | October 8, 2007

[SteveMcKing]

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Farmers in and around the Bay Area are starting to feel the pinch from tighter border security and visa requirements, NBC11's Daniel Garza reported Monday.

Some farmers told Garza they expect some of their fields to remain unpicked.

Some said they believe their fields will end up filled with rotting produce.

The Bush administration has learned of the possible loss of millions of dollars for thousands of farmers throughout the country, and is attempting to loosen visa requirements for workers.

However, farmers told Garza the attempt is "too little too late."

[MrB]

Don't come crying to government that American laws need to be changed in order to serve you.

On another note, it IS the government's responsibility for taking millions of Americans out of the work force that would qualify for just this type of work.

Return welfare to the private (religious) realm where it belongs, and the bums will be shamed into doing some work (or starve: he who will not work, nor shall he eat).

[gogeo]

Of course, the real reason they are struggling for labor is not that there aren't enough illegals, but that the illegals that are here have moved into higher-paying lines of work, such as construction and roofing...

THE post of the day.

[angkor]

Bear with me for a moment on the agriculture issue. First....:

The numbers are pretty clear and inarguable regarding unskilled and semi-skilled construction labor: illegal aliens have reduced the average gross wage rate by 20 to 50 percent compared to 1976-1979.

I personally spent come time doing research on this based on comments I heard from Steve Camarata of the Center For Immigration Studies during a radio interview. It turns out that Camarata and I both did construction labor during our college summers at just about the same time (late-70's), and for just about the same hourly rates ($6 to $8 per hour).

Camarata stated - and I have verified - that any of the major statistical measures would have construction laborers making a 1970's-normalized $18 to $29 per hour on today's job site. But we all know anecdotally that illegals are being paid about 80 percent to as little as 50 percent of those normalized rates (e.g., $12 to $16 an hour for illegals).

I would imagine that agricultural and all other unskilled and semi-skilled jobs are likewise paying substandard wages compared to the rates of 30 years ago.

When American businesses stop paying for this marginally cheaper but illegal commodity (peasant Mexican labor), Americans will most certainly take the jobs that employers now just don't feel like paying at livable wages.

Sorry, but American employers need to be reminded with "the big stick" that what they are doing is not merely unethical, not merely subversive to the U.S. economy, but a federal felony that can land them in very hot water.

[Madame Dufarge]

It has an elegance to it, that’s for sure.

[Froufrou]

Well, duh. All the years of farm subsidies have taught nothing? When they were paid to NOT overproduce? And now they’re crying foul?

They can’t have it both ways. I’ve seen the failure stats and more and more family farms are being bought and sold to corporations because, yeah, they’re expensive to run.

I’d like to know why we import stuff from Mexico and Chile, if there’s so much produce in California!

[gubamyster]

ping

[CottonBall]

Or, have they found other higher paying jobs Americans "won't do" and moved on to occupations?

First they came for the gardening jobs
and I did not speak out
because I was not a gardener.
Then they came for the construction jobs
and I did not speak out
because I was not in construction.
Then they came for the computer jobs
and I did not speak out
because I was not a computer programmer.
Then they came for my job
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.

paraphrased from
Pastor Martin Niemöller

[<1/1,000,000th%]

Border enforcement is improving?

[djf]

I’m sure there are a few high school kids, not to mention homeless folks in general, who would be thrilled if the farmer said:

Come to my field and pick for a day.
You get to keep ten percent of what you pick.

Then the pickers take it to the local Farmers market and sell what they got at the going rate.

[dennisw]

Years ago they had a good program - I think it was called the “bracero” program whereby the farmer associations were permitted to arrange with labor companies who hired Mexicans, brought them in to do the farm work and then return them to their homes in Mexico. No families were involved - just workers who were provided food and shelter and transportation to and from and, of course - wages.

This program was far from perfect. Too many Mexican stayed behind and many brought families up here
Ever hear of Operation Wetback? This cleaned up the bracero mess

[junta]

If its fall its time for the anual “produce is rotting in the fields” agitprop from the Mercedes Benz farmers.

[c-b 1]

This is very intensive, hand picking, back breaking work.
Not condusive to machinery.

You are exactly right.

This happening because the government has been refusing to do their job. The more this happens the more of our produce will be grown in Mexico, China, and other third world countrys.

[holyscroller]

"This smells, I drove I-5 from Modesto to Sac last week and there is very little “produce” left in the fields. I saw mostly corn and the produce stands had pretty much closed down for the year. There maybe some lettuce left around Salinas but the story is misleading.

This is what I was thinking. What crops are still waiting to be harvested? This is mid-October. What's the crop? Christmas trees? This is just another of the many BS stories planted to try to justify the need for more illegals.

[LtKerst]

Some said they believe their fields will end up filled with rotting produce

too bad......

now pay a higher wage to Americans.

[tracer]

If the "rotting crop" theory is true, it represents an opportunity for churches and other charitable groups to harvest food for the poor. And the welfare folks could be bused in to pick their food as a substitute for their welfare checks.

We also could use incarcerated illegals to pick the crops, with money from farmers being put into government accounts to offset the cost of their incarceration and deprtation....

[clintonh8r]

Most prison inmates are US citizens.

[Parmy]

Put this guy in jail for aiding and abetting illegals KNOWINGLY, and in violation of Federal Law.

I think you had better start putting the people who created this problem in jail first. Who? The United States Congressional members. Because it is they who made the laws that said it was against the law to ask if someone was a legal resident of the U.S. And, I could go on and on.

[gathersnomoss]

I do not give a rat’s ass, Go Out Of Business!!!

The MURDERERS that are flowing freely into what was The United States must be stopped. Citizens have pretty much had enough of Jorge Bush and his extended family.

[null and void]

This is very intensive, hand picking, back breaking work.,br> Not condusive to machinery.

That was once said about harvesting corn and cotton.

The simple truth is the ready availability of cheap serf/slave/bracerro labor stifles innovation.

[nicmarlo]

Sounds about right, yorkie.