http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_3497870

Article Last Updated: 2/10/2006 11:23 PM


Does the U.S. need a migrant worker program?

By Dawn House
The Salt Lake Tribune
Salt Lake Tribune

Without a guest-worker program for migrant laborers, Americans will pay more for their food or become dependent on other countries to stock their pantries.

In fact, farmers and ranchers are more dependent on migrant workers, including many of whom are here illegally, than any other sector in the U.S. economy, according to a study released by the American Farm Bureau Federation.

"Utah will not be immune from the losses if Congress approves a new immigration law that does not account for agriculture's needs for guest workers," says Leland Hogan, president of the Utah Farm Federation Bureau. "The consequences for American agriculture - including Utah's farmers, ranchers, food processors, nursery industry and landscapers - will be dire."

Agriculture, according to Hogan, likely is the first industry to reveal the realities of its dependence on foreign workers. The American federation is the world's largest general farm organization, with more than 5 million members in 50 states and Puerto Rico.

Without a guest-worker program that allows temporary jobs for a specified time, as much as $9 billion in agriculture production would be lost - and outsourced to nations overseas, according to the federation study.

About 2 million agricultural workers are drawn from farm families - who would see a $5 billion loss in their net income without access to hired laborers. At least half of the remaining 1 million in the farm work force are in this country illegally, according to estimates by the U.S. Department of Labor.

"The Farm Bureau supports efforts to tighten America's borders and to ensure that those who work here are legally entitled to do so," said Hogan, who is a board member of the national federation. "The agriculture industry is unique in that we are highly dependent on temporary workers to fill jobs that most Americans do not want to perform."

Like fruit and vegetable growers nationwide, Utah producers would be particularly hard hit if illegal laborers were rounded up and deported. That prospect is not remote. Last year, the House passed reform immigration legislation - with no provisions for guest workers.

The federation study indicated that up to one-third of the U.S. fruit and vegetable market would disappear if Congress fails to enact guest workers in immigration reform laws.

"We do not support illegal workers," said Randy Parker, CEO for Utah federation. "We want want a workable program."

Such a program would have to accommodate 500,000 migrant workers. The current H-2a Temporary Agricultural Worker program handles about 30,000.

Typically, farm and ranch families hire workers who ostensibly have proper documents, but they do not have the ability to check more deeply into employees' legal status, said Parker. There's also a chilling effect for deeper investigations because federal laws place limits on researching potential employees, which could be viewed as discriminatory.

Labor shortages complicate the immigration issue even more. Utah farmers were unable to hire enough workers last year, and could face catastrophic consequences if they cannot find more seasonal laborers during the state's short fruit- and vegetable-growing seasons.

Utah's ability to harvest its produce has national implications. For instance, the Beehive State is second in the nation for tart cherry production, third for apricots, seventh for sweet cherries, eighth in onions and ninth for pears, according to the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food.

At the same time, American grocers are caught in a competition squeeze with foreign producers. Instead of stockpiling American produce, it's more likely they would fill their shelves with foreign-grown produce, resulting in billions of dollars spent overseas, said the study.

As much as one-third of the production for the fastest-growing fresh component of the fruit and vegetable market would be lost.

Beyond the staggering economic losses, there's also a critical link between a stable domestic food supply and homeland security, American Federation official Anne Keller said in a statement. "Backed by the promise of rigorous food-safety regulations and cutting-edge agricultural science, food grown on U.S. soil continues to be the safest in the world."
dawn@sltrib.com