Illegal immigrants making $10/hour on Long Island farms
Illegal immigrants making $10/hour on LI farms
by John Callegari
Published: April 20, 2012
Illegal immigration has consistently been a hot-button issue on Long Island, and while many seem to be on different sides of the fence on the issue, they all agree that the government needs to act to institute some type of immigration reform.
The Long Island Regional Immigration Summit, held today at SUNY College at Old Westbury, explored immigrants’ impact on the Long Island economy, with multiple individuals touting the benefits immigrants have brought with them and exploring the issues that need to be addressed both at the governmental and commercial level.
“We don’t want to be a place like Arizona or Alabama where immigration laws are crippling their economies,” said Luis Valenzuela, executive director of the Long Island Immigrant Alliance.
Much of Long Island’s own immigrant population centers around the agricultural industry. According to Joe Gergela, executive director of the Long Island Farm Bureau, agriculture makes up 6 percent of Long Island’s economy and employs 7,000 to 8,000 employees. And national statistics suggest 60 percent of that workforce consists of illegal immigrants. And that’s not necessarily due to cost cutting.
“There’s a myth in our industry that immigrants are taking our jobs,” Gergela said. “The truth is people are not willing to work on farms from sunup to sundown.”
The standard rate for farm workers is about $10 per hour now, Gergela said, well above the minimum wage rate of $7.25 per hour mandated by the state.
“My farmers are very worried about being in compliance [with labor laws],” Gergela said. “We’re not allowed to ask certain questions in an interview, such as immigration status. We can’t tell by looking at people who’s legal or not legal. If Social Security contacts us, then we approach the worker and tell them they have a certain amount of time to get in compliance.”
And Pat Voges, government liaison for the Nassau Suffolk Landscape Gardeners Association, said illegal immigrants in the landscaping industry get paid even more than that.
“The guy getting up at 7-Eleven makes $14 per hour,” Voges said. “We’re having trouble bringing people in this year.”
Both industries are paying more than minimum wage to maintain competitive. Raising the minimum wage – a proposal that’s currently being floated by Democrats in Albany would force competition of these wages to go even higher – is something Gergela does not support.
“We’re not just competing with the region, we’re competing internationally,” Gergela said. “Buy local is great, but if they can get something for cheaper from another place, they will.”
Gergela and other immigrant advocates agreed that comprehensive immigration reform that opens up the visa program is needed to fix the problem. Redoing the visa program to create a three-year renewable visa for agricultural workers, in which they could work during the year, go home in the off-season and see their families, and then come back the following year would help create a path toward legalization for agricultural workers, Gergela said.
And Voges noted that those who become citizens often start their own businesses, creating jobs and employing others.
“I spoke to one guy I’ve known for a while who said he’s now a full citizen, has his own company and employs 34 employees,” Voges said. “It’s great.”
source: Illegal immigrants making $10/hour on Long Island farms | Long Island Business News
