ERIC PAUL ZAMORA / THE FRESNO BEE
Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya Rosales turns to Ana Vilma de Escobar, vice president of El Salvador, and other seated dignitaries at the beginning of the Western Agriculture Labor Summit held Saturday at the Holiday Inn in downtown Fresno.

Top Central America officials in ValleyBy Guy Keeler / The Fresno Bee06/07/08 22:08:54



The president of Honduras and top government figures from El Salvador and Guatemala visited the central San Joaquin Valley on Saturday to learn more about California's farm-labor crisis -- and to offer their help.

They stopped at a fruit-packinghouse in Fowler. They went to a nearby almond-processing plant. And they held a news conference in a place that doesn't often see delegations of foreign dignitaries -- the library at Washington Union High School in Easton.

Summit organizer Manuel Cunha Jr., president of the Nisei Farmers League, told the Central American visitors that Easton was typical of the small Valley communities that depend on agriculture -- and farmworkers -- for their livelihood.

But Valley growers increasingly have trouble finding enough skilled farmworkers to tend and harvest strawberries, oranges and other labor-intensive crops, Cunha said. Permanent U.S. residents generally won't do the work because it's hard and seasonal, he said.

Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya Rosales said he'll do what he can to make it easier for his citizens to get permission to work in Valley fields. But he and others at the Western Agriculture Labor Summit -- held at the downtown Fresno Holiday Inn -- acknowledged that all the countries must work together.

"We know there is a great shortage of farm labor in California and the southern United States," he said, speaking through a translator. "We really do hope this meeting can contribute to finding a solution to this problem."

Also in attendance were Ana Vilma de Escobar, vice president of El Salvador, and Miguel Angel Ibarra, Guatemala's deputy minister of foreign affairs. They met with Valley growers, government officials and representatives of agricultural industry groups to discuss farm-labor needs and how a more efficient guest-worker program could benefit their citizens as well as U.S. farmers.

"We are on the brink of disaster," said David Jackson, owner of Family Tree Farms in Reedley. "Ninety to 95% of our workers are undocumented."

Jackson was among several growers who told the Central American visitors that the future of their industry depends on creating a more efficient way -- either through existing immigration law or immigration reform legislation -- to enable foreign workers to labor in California fields for up to 10 months while keeping permanent residence in their home countries.

The Valley needs 180,000 seasonal workers every year, Cunha said.

Zelaya said Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala each have the potential of supplying 30,000 to 50,000 temporary workers to the United States. What is needed, participants agreed, is a system under which the workers can come to the United States legally, with a minimum of red tape, to work during peak harvest seasons and then return home.

Central American countries would benefit by receiving much-needed income. In Honduras, farmworkers earn $150 a month. In America they can earn that much in a couple days. Hondurans use income earned as foreign workers to build homes, educate their children and start businesses, said Adolfo Facusse, president of the National Association of Industries in Honduras.

"Our people are eager and willing to do the jobs Americans don't want to do," Facusse said. "The salaries they earn help our countries. People come home and build businesses or work on their own farms."

President Zelaya said he's enthusiastic about allowing citizens from Honduras to work legally in the United States on a temporary basis. But he said the welfare of the workers must come first.

The president of Honduras and top government figures from El Salvador and Guatemala visited the central San Joaquin Valley on Saturday to learn more about California's farm-labor crisis -- and to offer their help.

They stopped at a fruit-packinghouse in Fowler. They went to a nearby almond-processing plant. And they held a news conference in a place that doesn't often see delegations of foreign dignitaries -- the library at Washington Union High School in Easton.

Summit organizer Manuel Cunha Jr., president of the Nisei Farmers League, told the Central American visitors that Easton was typical of the small Valley communities that depend on agriculture -- and farmworkers -- for their livelihood.
But Valley growers increasingly have trouble finding enough skilled farmworkers to tend and harvest strawberries, oranges and other labor-intensive crops, Cunha said. Permanent U.S. residents generally won't do the work because it's hard and seasonal, he said.

Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya Rosales said he'll do what he can to make it easier for his citizens to get permission to work in Valley fields. But he and others at the Western Agriculture Labor Summit -- held at the downtown Fresno Holiday Inn -- acknowledged that all the countries must work together.

"We know there is a great shortage of farm labor in California and the southern United States," he said, speaking through a translator. "We really do hope this meeting can contribute to finding a solution to this problem."

Also in attendance were Ana Vilma de Escobar, vice president of El Salvador, and Miguel Angel Ibarra, Guatemala's deputy minister of foreign affairs. They met with Valley growers, government officials and representatives of agricultural industry groups to discuss farm-labor needs and how a more efficient guest-worker program could benefit their citizens as well as U.S. farmers.

"We are on the brink of disaster," said David Jackson, owner of Family Tree Farms in Reedley. "Ninety to 95% of our workers are undocumented."

Jackson was among several growers who told the Central American visitors that the future of their industry depends on creating a more efficient way -- either through existing immigration law or immigration reform legislation -- to enable foreign workers to labor in California fields for up to 10 months while keeping permanent residence in their home countries.

The Valley needs 180,000 seasonal workers every year, Cunha said.

Zelaya said Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala each have the potential of supplying 30,000 to 50,000 temporary workers to the United States. What is needed, participants agreed, is a system under which the workers can come to the United States legally, with a minimum of red tape, to work during peak harvest seasons and then return home.

Central American countries would benefit by receiving much-needed income. In Honduras, farmworkers earn $150 a month. In America they can earn that much in a couple days. Hondurans use income earned as foreign workers to build homes, educate their children and start businesses, said Adolfo Facusse, president of the National Association of Industries in Honduras.

"Our people are eager and willing to do the jobs Americans don't want to do," Facusse said. "The salaries they earn help our countries. People come home and build businesses or work on their own farms."

President Zelaya said he's enthusiastic about allowing citizens from Honduras to work legally in the United States on a temporary basis. But he said the welfare of the workers must come first.

Fresno Mayor Alan Autry agreed.

"The issue of farm labor and immigration reform is the defining issue of this generation," Autry said. "But we need to see the larger picture. We're dealing with people -- good, hard-working people who are willing to do work that, quite frankly, many Americans won't do."

Undocumented workers can face danger in the United States, said Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims.
"They are victimized by criminals who take advantage of their immigrant status," she said, noting that undocumented workers may be reluctant to report crimes out of fear of being deported. "Having a program where they are here legally would reduce those crimes."

Cunha, the summit organizer, said smugglers often sap the economic vitality of small Central American communities by taking large numbers of workers from one area. And once workers are in the United States illegally, they often decide not to go home because of the expense and danger of having to recross the border should they choose to return.

"When our citizens leave home to work illegally in the United States it can cause a breakdown of the family," Ibarra, the Guatemalan delegate, said through a translator. "We need to cooperate so these problems don't happen."

Facusse said putting Central American countries in charge of recruiting workers would eliminate a lot of problems. Developing a list of skilled workers who have security clearance could streamline the immigration process, he said.

While all agreed a new guest-worker program is needed, none could say when such a program could be up and running.

Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, noted presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain both have pledged to support immigration reform if elected.

"Some of us believe that there is some light at the end of the tunnel," he said. "I'm optimistic we can get something done in the next two years."

In the mean time, Costa said it's important for Valley farmers to work more closely with Central American governments to better utilize existing laws to bring workers to America.

Zelaya said guest-worker programs have been successful in other parts of the world, and he said his country is willing to do its part to establish a more efficient visa-application process.

"We can do this," he said. "Let's get to work, gentlemen. We're ready."




The reporter can be reached at gkeeler@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6383
http://www.fresnobee.com/263/story/653637.html