It’s simple—farmers want to be exempt from the competitive wages and decent working conditions that the rest of the country’s employers provide in order to attract good workers.
We have some clients who run a small (~$1.5M)organic farm.
They have legal green card workers from Mexico. The pay for the airfare and other costs to bring these (mostly long-time) workers into the country and then send them home over the winter. They provide furnished rental houses in the area for the workers. These are all comparable to the other homes in the area. The have a chef on staff and this chef is responsible for a huge gourmet lunch every day. The owners eat with the workers. Some of the longest-term workers are considered family by the owners and vice versus.
We asked them if amnesty effected them. The answer was “No!” The workers like the arrangement. They like their homes back in Mexico. They can’t wait to return to their families over the winter. They enjoy their work and their summers here.