Posted on 06/25/2010 10:13:56 AM PDT by Chi-townChief
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — In a tongue-in-cheek call for immigration reform, farm workers are teaming up with comedian Stephen Colbert in a challenge to unemployed Americans: Come on, take our jobs.
Farm workers are tired of being blamed by politicians and anti-immigrant activists for taking work that should go to Americans and dragging down the economy, said Arturo Rodriguez, the president of the United Farm Workers of America.
So the group is encouraging the unemployed — and any Washington pundits who want to join them — to apply for the some of thousands of agricultural jobs being posted with state agencies as harvest season begins.
All applicants need to do is fill out an online form under the banner "I want to be a farm worker" at www.takeourjobs.org, and experienced field hands will train them and connect them to farms.
Three out of four farm workers in the U.S. were born abroad, and more than half are illegal immigrants, according to the Labor Department.
Proponents of tougher immigration laws have argued that farmers have become used to cheap labor. The problem with the UFW's proposition, they argue, is that growers don't want to raise wages and improve working conditions enough to attract Americans.
In either case, those who have done the job have some words of advice for applicants.
First, dress appropriately. During summer, when the harvest of fruits and vegetables is in full swing in California's Central Valley, temperatures hover in the triple digits. Heat exhaustion is one of the reasons farm labor consistently makes the Bureau of Labor Statistics' top ten list of the nation's most dangerous jobs.
Second, expect long days. Growers have a small window to pick fruit before it is overripe; work starts before dawn and goes on for 12 or more hours.
And don't count on a big paycheck. Farm workers are excluded from federal overtime provisions, and small farms don't even have to pay the minimum wage. Fifteen states don't require farm labor to be covered by workers compensation laws.
Any takers?
"The reality is farmworkers who are here today aren't taking any American jobs away. They work in often unbearable situations," Rodriguez said. "I don't think there will be many takers, but the offer is being made. Let's see what happens."
To highlight just how unlikely the prospect of Americans lining up to pick strawberries or grapes is, Comedy Central's "Colbert Report" plans to feature the "Take Our Jobs" campaign on July 8. Requests to Comedy Central and Colbert for comment on the nature of the collaboration weren't immediately answered.
Another way of tackling the issue is to strengthen immigration enforcement, said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which supports strict immigration laws.
It's an idea that might not end up on Comedy Central, but reducing the pool of farm workers would force growers to improve working conditions and raise wages.
"They're daring the American people to get by without farm workers," he said. "What I'm saying is, 'Let's take them up on that and call their bluff.'"
The campaign is being played for jokes, but the need to secure the right to work for immigrants who are here is serious business, said Michael Rubio, supervisor in Kern County, one of the biggest ag producing counties in the nation.
"Our county, our economy, rely heavily on the work of immigrant and unauthorized workers," he said. "I would encourage all our national leaders to come visit Kern County and to spend one day, or even half a day, in the shoes of these farm workers."
Hopefully, the message will go down easier with some laughs, said Manuel Cunha, president of the California grower association Nisei Farmers League, who was not a part of the campaign.
"If you don't add some humor to this, it's enough to get you drinking, and I don't mean Pepsi," Cunha said, dismissing the idea that Americans would take up the farm workers' offer.
California's agriculture industry launched a similar campaign in 1998, hoping to recruit welfare recipients and unemployed workers to work on farms, he said. Three people showed up.
"Give us a legal, qualified work force. Right now, farmers don't know from day to day if they're going to get hammered by ICE," he said, referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "What happens to my labor pool?"
His organization supports AgJobs, a bill currently in the Senate which would allow those who have worked in U.S. agriculture for at least 150 days in the previous two years to get legal status.
The bill has been proposed in various forms since the late 1990s, with backing from the United Farm Workers of America and other farming groups, but has never passed.
Politicians' and advocates' perspectives on the matter might change if they were to take up the farm workers' offer, said Rubio from Bakersfield.
"The view and the temperature is much different from a row in a field than from inside an air conditioned office," he said. "Is it a challenge? Most certainly, yes. Come on down."
I sincerely beg to differ! But then maybe mine ARE some of those exceptions...
When my son was a wrtstler, his coach offered the team a way to earn thier way to wrestling camp...By working in his fields along with the Latinos.
Three, of seven, including my son, were offered to return to work after camp.
The big guy told my son that he had good news and bad news.
The good news was that the Latinos liked him, the bad news was that he could work the rest of the summer.
His brother was recruited to come back to Alaska for the summer. Originally, this one hitched a ride up there with a trucker that was doing moving and landed a good job because he know HOW to work. Daughter has 6 kids and never had a mortgage-they built their own home and now do remodeling. My grandkids go to work with parents when at all possible and they know how to work too.
I’m late to this party- I’ve been outside doing stuff, still have chores to do.
We still put up square bales around here, mostly for horse owners now but alfalfa squares were a big deal for dairies even 10 years ago. Across the river in MO most of my friends set, cut and hung tobacco in their youth.
My cousins in Iowa detassled seed corn in the summer for spending money.
As many have said, it builds character, teaches young people what a dollar is really worth, and helps you understand how we all eat.
Does anyone want to do farm labor day in, day out all their life? Most don’t...., maybe they’ll pay attention in class next fall a little more.
Americans can do this work; how the hell else did this country get settled? Weren’t no slaves here in the Free State.
>>Why was the Cotton Gin invented? Because a war was fought over whether slavery was legal or not —the answer was no.
The cotton gin was invented long before the Civil War and it actually made slavery more economically viable by automating the separation process. You still had to pick the cotton by hand and that was the slaves’ job.
Here’s what I think...
They think americans are lazy....whatever...yea some are..
But...Americans haven’t had to do the manual labor as much in the past 20 years because the American society has gotten more educated and that has brought more jobs to use your brains instead of your hands...
ALMOST EVERYONE from a 3rd world crap hole like mexico is used to manual labor....BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO BE....
so I’m gonna be impressed with Mexicans dogging us b/c we are “lazy”....NEWSFLASH...start getting educated ya little bean eaters and YOU won’t have to work so hard.
Let's be honest, when any profession becomes overrun with cheap labor both wages and working conditions decline.
I hated it when Bush used to use the phrase "Jobs Americans won't do..." and I despise the Bamster when he gives it a whole racial angle.
I would so love to hear someone put up your premise to some of these congressional windbags at a town hall meeting. Excellent analogy.
Funny how the fascist demoRATs in congress ignore that. The problem w/illegal messycans working in the states is that they work for near slave wages. That's the problem.
If we'd deport their sorry butts, then wages would rise to realistic levels.
When I was a kid there was a local farmer who grew some peas. We would go pick peas for some candy money. If we got that far. Usually blew it all at the taco wagon. Anyway, the farmer paid by the pounds picked.
We all understand Obama and Soros is trying to fix that kind of American wrong headedness but we just aren't there yet...maybe next year.
AMEN. I've been out looking for almost 2 months now. I've even gone to drywall contractors and office cleaning companies. These are jobs typically done by illegals around these parts. I don't even get a callback. I'm more than willing to work under the table but no go. The only reason I can think of is that as an American these contractors know they can't BS me as easily as someone here illegally, and they know that if things are dangerous or unhealthy there's a chance I'll report it.
ECON 101 - Wages and conditions will sink to the lowest level the market will bear.
The Oakies came here to Califonia picking fruit, working the fields long before the Mexicans did.
We used to have labor camps here. Hardly anything like a "camp". There was housing, schools, daycare, playgrounds, laundry facilities and meeting halls...even gated (out, not in).
I'm not Mexican, I worked for a farmer and in the fields as a young man.
"Sorry Senator, your state has decided to have Joe Smith fill your position until further notice. If something changes, we ... might let you know."
We had lots of folks in N Ohio who would pick berries in season. Some were Hispanic and many weren’t.
By the flat makes sense if the price is right. If it isn’t, then folks won’t do it.
That’s why illegals are so wrong. Anyone working for slave wages distorts a free market and wrong-sets a price on a commodity.
Are you a liberal? I’m sure not. Go back and read what I said in this thread. Good job! Wish everyone raised their kids the same.
Cotton is not that easy to damage, compared to strawberries. But it would be an interesting project, technically. I'd build a robot with very soft fingers and a good vision. The robot would be moving between rows, looking for berries of proper coloration and carefully picking them, then storing in a tray. Perhaps it would be based on this hand.
Sure the machine would be expensive - say, $100K. However consider that it would be picking all ripe berries from a single strawberry plant in just a few seconds, and it doesn't need to rest; it can work 24/7, as long as there is a light source for cameras to see in color. If the farmer's option is, for example, to hire 30 workers for 10 hours, for $10/hr to work one field, that amounts to $3K per field per day. It's comparable to the cost of the machine, especially if a single robot can do all your picking, day after day, as new berries are getting ready. With human labor you need to pay again and again; with a robot you pay once and it keeps working for you.
Eli Whitney got his first patent on his invention-the cotton gin in 1794. To which war were you referring?
Also, no cotton gin ever made has ever picked a single strand of cotton. A “gin” only removes the seeds inside the cotton bolls.
When I was a “young white” I did seasonal work on a farm picking fruit etc...
I picked apples on one farm and and graded and tied tobacco on another...
Peaches were always the worst! Back when I was a kid they had LOTS more fuzz on them than they do now. And apparently I was allergic to it! It caused me to itch 100 times worse than any fiberglass or rock wool. Still, picking peaches beats picking butterbeans-have to bend way down to get to them! And yes-okra sucks!
Oh now you convinced me. Guess you must be one of those disenfranchised Americans who can’t make it and needs someone to blame.
Can those jobs be mechanized?
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