Lack Of Immigrant Reform Program Could Deepen Farm Labor Shortage Woes

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.cattlenetwork.com/content.asp?contentid=198657

COLLEGE STATION - A continued shortage of farm labor, particularly in certain South Texas vegetable operations, could lead to a spike in cantaloupe and onion prices this summer without changes to immigrant worker policy, a Texas AgriLife Extension Service economist said.

“We’ve seen some fairly major shortages in field labor the past couple of seasons,” said Dr. Parr Rosson, AgriLife Extension economist and director of the Center for North American Studies at Texas A&M University.

Rosson has conducted a study examining the impacts of immigration on Texas agriculture. The study’s findings, presented recently to Texas Farm Bureau members at their annual Leadership Conference, reveal over the past three growing seasons a 20 percent to 25 percent average labor shortage in field operations ranging from fruit and vegetable farms to nursery and dairy operations.

Fruit, vegetable and nursery industries together produce about $2.1 billion in income annually and account for 46,000 jobs, Rosson said.

“With a 20 percent labor loss, the value of business activity comes out to $363 million in losses, some $545 million in lost income and 9,260 lost jobs as we go through those periods of labor shortages,” Rosson said.

There have been “acute” labor shortages in the state’s cantaloupe operations, Rosson said.

FULL story at link.

Raise the pay to a living wage. Provide water and modern facilities. That will bring workers. This is an example of an earlier post today. Talk shortage, when you mean import slavery.

[notadmblnd]

1. who will they get to do the jobs the Mexicans won't do?

should we be expecting the mass immigration of Asian children as their next exploitation victims?

[Duke Newcombe]

3. someone will do it...

...or nobody will do it...or a machine will do it.

Duke

[Duke Newcombe]

2. There is no shortage of labor...

...there's a shortage of will for agribusiness to stick a crowbar in their wallets to pay American citizens the prevailing wage for such work instead of exploiting brown skinned people for cheap labor, and looking the other way re: immigration status (if not being outright complicit in bringing folks here illegally).

Duke