Washington orchards desperate for apple pickers

The Columbian ^ | Nov 9, 2011 | SHANNON DININNY

[concerned about politics]

There are millions of welfare recipients in this country who could work. There's also a dozen or so OWS protesters who obviously aren't working. Send them all to Washington to pick apples. At least they'll be doing something productive to earn their keep.
Besides, laying around all day in their own sewage is NOT healthy.

[Vaduz]

Why don’tthey use prison work release program?.

[PGR88]

We have the same thing here in NY.

Are these jobs Americans won’t do? Or are these jobs Americans are paid by their Gov’t NOT to do? I know plenty of bored suburban teens just down the road from orchards here, who would NEVER consider a job picking apples. I know several unemployed men who would rather collect unemployment than consider picking apples.

[elpadre]

remind me, just what is the unemployment rate in Oregon???

[oh8eleven]

Typically, about 70 percent of the state's farmworkers are in the country illegally.
And the growers are probably underpaying them. Raise the rates and maybe more legal workers will show up.
Maybe everyone on the dole should be offered free transportation to the orchards and then their wages deducted from their welfare check.

[concerned about politics]

But farmers say an immigration crackdown by the federal government and states such as Arizona and Alabama scared off many more workers.

We don't need foreign labor. Like I said, we're paying millions of dollars for welfare recipients to do nothing. It's not like they can't find the time to go to Washington and do something productive for once in their miserable, useless lives.
Get those lazy SOBs off their butts. The country, as well as the world, would be a much better place because of it.
Government dependency is a national crises. Something has to be done about it. Welfare sloth is worse than any plague this country has ever had to deal with before.

[goodnesswins]

Oregon did not have any problem with pickers for fruit this year.....hhhmmmmm....wonder what the difference is? (I really do not know)

[Astronaut]

WA doesn’t need to import welfare recipients to pick apples; we have plenty of our own. Maybe some Americans should get off their lazy asses and do some work instead of collecting 99 weeks of unemployment and welfare and sitting at home doing nothing. Why do we have to bring in illegal Mexicans to work when the Obama regime has driven unemployment past 9%? Because we’re lazy and have entitlement mentalities? Because generations of liberalism has destroyed our national work ethic?

[goodnesswins]

I hear ya....however, being part of a family that owns a commercial orchard there was a time when the grandfather tried going to Skid Row to hire guys (in the 50’s?) and it didn’t work too well. Welfare people (long term) are welfare people for a reason...not sure forcing them to be on a 100 acre farm would make things any better...can you imagine the rules? the threats of lawsuits?

[mrsmith]

Stupid, stupid lying...

There’s been no ‘crackdown’ in Washington.
Immigrants are staying away because of our economic problems. The jobs are just not profitable enough for them.
Some one should look at why instead of propagandizing.

[Publius Valerius]

Raise the rates and maybe more legal workers will show up.

Hard to sell apples at $10 a pound.

[goodnesswins]

What would be great is to trade Mexico our welfare losers for the hard working Mexicans.....

[dfwgator]

Waaaah, they are just whining because they may actually have to pay a decent wage to attract pickers.

[Obadiah]

But farmers say an immigration crackdown by the federal government and states such as Arizona and Alabama scared off many more workers. They have tried to replace them with domestic workers with little success and inmates at a much greater cost.

Oh, so the answer is to open up the border and let the free flow of illegal immigrants pick our apples, huh? You know how liberals force auto makers to meet CAFE standards arguing that the same auto makers will figure out (pay for) new technology to meet the currently unattainable standards? Well, the same applies here. The apple growers will develop technology to offset illegal immigrant pickers.

By the way, why is it okay to pay American workers one wage, and then pay a substandard wage under the table to an illegal immigrant? How is that justified? That means two things. First, paying a differing wage scale in this instance is an attempt to take advantage of others and is hypocritical. Second, this proves that Unions and Union wages have destroyed much of the economy in this country. With a minimum wage near $8 an hour no wonder apple farmers can't afford to hire Americans, but then Conservative have long made this argument, haven't they?

[dfwgator]

Raise the rates and maybe more legal workers will show up. Hard to sell apples at $10 a pound.

How was the end of slavery dealt with? They invented machinery to pick the cotton....as they say, "Necessity is the mother of invention."

[Lazamataz]

I have a Pickled Pepper Picker.

[vrwconspiracist]

It’s neat when two news stories converge. OWS should Occupy Washington State orchards-I understand they want lefty academia to provide them with free apples....maybe growers could make student loan payments instead of wages...

[SeeSharp]

One solution might be to pay cash under the table. Plenty of welfare recipients would take a short term job if it posed no threat to their benefits.

[PapaBear3625]

Over the long term, this task will be taken over by robotic fruit pickers. The availability of cheap illegal labor delays the point where technology replaces the human on the ladder.