Opinion: Silence On Labor Reform Is Deafening
August 1, 2007 There are times when you can afford to have patience, and just hope things will work out for the best. This, however, was not one of those times.
As you’ve no doubt heard by now, the issue of immigration and labor reform has reached a dead end, and unless a miracle happens, it will be months, perhaps years, before any more progress is made. Despite a last-ditch push from President Bush to encourage the Senate to come up with a sensible, comprehensive bill, the controversies and disagreements that have been part of the broad immigration debate could not be overcome. While there is still a slight chance that a stand-alone ag labor bill could be brought to the floor, that possibility appears remote at best.
Granted, there are several outside factors that made passage of the bill unlikely. Public opinion has been so divided that few politicians were willing to publicly debate the issue, for fear of alienating part of their base supporters. However, let’s be honest — it may have been the inaction and lack of voice from those who are most in need of labor reform that played a role in the demise of the bill.
Don’t believe me? Just contact your local Congressional representatives and ask them. They’ll probably tell you, as some leading industry organizations are confirming, that for every call or e-mail they received in favor of a comprehensive reform bill, they received 10 more from those calling for tighter restrictions on immigration.
This is not to say that the whole fruit industry, or the entire specialty ag industry for that matter, was silent. In fact, groups such as the U.S. Apple Association, United Fresh Produce Association, the American Nursery and Landscape Association, and others made labor the top priority for their members, and spent countless hours lobbying on Capitol Hill. Unfortunately, they could not do it alone.
Reality Bites
So what happens now? First of all, this is not the time to dwell; that time is passed. Rather, it’s time to look at the reality of the current situation. And that reality is that the short-term effects of the failure to pass a labor reform bill could be devastating. Your labor supplies are likely to get even tighter, especially if raids continue to increase in some areas. As Jeff Crist, a USApple board member and our 2007 Apple Grower of the Year notes, those growers who have invested in new blocks and varieties, but have no one to pick them, might find themselves in a “business-ending situation.”
Those growers who want to survive through the next couple of years — and let’s face it, some may not make it — will have to decide what their options are right now, not years from now. There is potential for advancements in orchard mechanization and automation, and labor reform could be resurrected some day. But those are long-term goals.
So what can you do to confront this problem today? Here are a few potential ideas:
• Train and preach efficiency to your employees. You’re going to have less of them, and they’re going to need to be more efficient than ever.
• Treat your employees fairly, so you’ll be able to keep them on the farm.
• Look for any possible sources for new labor, including local agricultural students. Also, look for ways to share laborers with your fellow growers.
• Be prepared to make hard decisions about the possibility of leaving fruit on the tree or vine again this year.
The industry will survive this potential crisis. It always does. You will too, if you play it smart, make the right decisions, and be proactive in addressing the labor shortage problem sooner rather than later.
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