Last month, Stephen Colbert's trip to Capitol Hill set off an echo chamber of debate. Depending on who you ask, Mr. Colbert's appearance before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration was either a shameful mockery of our legislative process or a brilliant ploy to bring attention to the plight of hundreds of thousands of foreign farm workers doing backbreaking jobs that, even in times like these, Americans simply won't do.
I have no interest in bickering over the strategic wisdom of Colbert's controversial congressional appearance, but I do have a bone to pick with his message.
Stephen Colbert testified that he was one of only 16 people across the entire United States who'd signed up to take a field job offered by the United Farm Workers as part of their "Take Our Jobs" campaign. Millions of unemployed Americans and there's only one faux talk show host and a handful of people willing to do this work.
Colbert, I'm afraid you've been duped... although, you are far from alone on this.
Even among those skeptical of the general concept of "jobs Americans won't do" (see my recent post), when it comes to farm work, foreign labor's long been the historical reality and the conventional wisdom. Heck, it was my conventional wisdom -- until last week.
That was when a tip sent Dan Rather Reports down to Colquitt County, Georgia where we found plenty of out-of-work Americans -- literally hundreds -- vying for jobs in the fields. The problem, these folks told us, is that the farmers in the area would rather import foreign guest workers to pick their vegetables than hire Americans.
Labor advocates say that farmers may like their labor cheap, fast and disposable, but it's illegal discrimination.
The allegation itself is rather extraordinary. After two decades watching the South seethe and bleed, I have seen plenty of discrimination in my time. But these workers -- who are of varying colors, creeds and abilities -- claim they are being discriminated against not because of their race or gender or any other discrete and insular minority category, but because of their national origin, because they were born American.
The complaints from the farm workers of Colquitt County have triggered several lawsuits and federal investigations by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Justice Department.
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We decided to get a glimpse of the situation for ourselves. Six days before we arrived in Colquitt County, 136 U.S. workers landed jobs with a local grower called J&R Baker Farms. Many of the new hires said day after day, they'd been reporting for duty before daybreak, only to stand around for hours waiting for impossible assignments (like picking vegetables from a field that had already been harvested) and declared unqualified. They told us that the farm sent them home after an hour or two of work and their first week's paychecks amounted to less than $50. By week two, nearly all of the American workers had either quit or been fired. Meanwhile, foreign guest workers -- who were imported by the farm using a federal visa program known as the H-2A program -- were out in the in fields picking away.
The H-2A agricultural guest worker program gives farmers a legal way to hire foreign workers when they can't find enough Americans. In order to participate, farmers must comply with rules intended to protect domestic jobs and wages. Not only must they try to recruit Americans first, they must also pledge to pay their guest workers what's called a prevailing wage, the market rate determined by the federal government.
But the labor "shortage," worker advocates say, is often merely a fiction drummed up by farmers seeking to justify hiring guest workers, who -- because their legal status in the United States is contingent upon maintaining employment -- are easier to overwork and underpay.
"They're using the guest worker program not as a temporary replacement, but as a permanent workforce," said Dawson Morton, an attorney with Georgia Legal Services who represents farm workers foreign and domestic. "They don't want any local workers that apply. But they're not allowed to displace American workers for foreign workers and so that puts them in an awkward situation and they're having to basically give the American workers the runaround until they quit or give up so that the farm can keep its foreign workforce, which it prefers."
But Roy Baker, an attorney for local growers, including J&R Baker Farms, said his clients simply can not find local workers who will actually do the work.
"You can ask any of these guys that do these H2A programs, they would much rather not have to import any labor. It costs them a lot more," he said. " But when they get sent convicts and other people like this that come out here at a point of a gun...and they just come out here and act like total heathens and savages, it's just a no-win situation."
Baker says the problems stem from government intervention in the market. Farmers find themselves forced, he says, to choose between hiring undocumented workers or using the H-2A program, which requires a "big charade" of cycling through local applicants who aren't willing or able to do the stoop labor. Having a hiring preference for U.S. workers might make sense for politicians on the stump, Baker said, but it creates huge headaches and dizzying legal hoops for farmers who are simply trying to get their vegetables picked.
Especially given the current rush of job seekers in Colquitt County, the paperwork alone can overwhelm a small business, according to Sheila Booth, who handles the payroll for the two brothers who own J&R Baker Farms.
"I was one of the main Americans that used to raise Cain about internationals comin' here and takin' Americans' jobs until I started workin' for the boys." Booth said. "I don't know why the boys don't go postal. I'm almost to that point."
Local farms are being pushed to the breaking point with all the red tape and government scrutiny, Baker said.
"It's a fear of who's showin' up next. Is it gonna be feds? Is it gonna be state? Is it gonna a combination of both? These small, family-type farmers -- they have no voice. "
Whether or not it is truly accurate to say these are small farms getting pushed out of business by big government, (data compiled by the Environmental Working Group show that of the nearly $220 million in government subsidies and payments Colquitt County farms have received since 1995, 79 percent has gone to the biggest farms) they do have a voice in Washington -- a powerful voice.
Among the 45,000 people who call Colquitt County home is Senator U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss, the ranking Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
In an interview with Dan Rather Reports, Senator Chambliss said it would make no sense for H-2A farmers to discriminate against American workers and he's never heard such allegations.
"When workers say they're willing to come work, then I would say they're going to have every opportunity to do the job," he said. "I'm just confident that our farmers are not trying to run any local workers off, because it's to their advantage to have local workers, versus going through this maze they have to traverse to get [guest workers]."
Chambliss sponsored a bill two weeks ago that would reduce all that red tape for farmers who use the H-2A program.
"It's worked well over the years, but it's very expensive on the farmer to participate in H2A," he said. "Their competitor down the road that hires illegal workers is paying minimum wage, so there's a pretty significant discrepancy right there from a competition standpoint."
Chambliss has his sights set on the estimated 50 to 70 percent of the 1.2 million farm workers in the country who are undocumented. He says they pose not only a national security threat, they also undercut farmers who rely on a legal workforce -- foreign or domestic.
"Whether you're manufacturing widgets, or whether you're growing cucumbers, your goal is to get your product to the marketplace, and sell it at the very highest price and to try to keep the cost of the production of that product to as low as you can possibly get it, " Sen. Chambliss said. "That spread is what allows people to live the American dream."
Between what the Senator, Colbert, and unemployed Americans say about the "Guest Worker" policy, there is an important story down on the farm.
It's a debate that generates strong feelings on all sides (as we've seen on our Facebook page). No matter which side you're on however, I hope we can all agree it's a debate worth having.
Dan Rather Reports airs Tuesdays on HDNet at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET. This episode is also available on iTunes.
One simple solution is to respect food production in our society, and have a special Ag minimum wage of $12/hour. Get those unemployed who are willing, out in the fields on a piece-work system. If they want to be paid more, then they can learn & respect the skill set needed to earn more in those jobs.
I've picked some melons & grapes in my younger days. I was the only "american" to last longer than a couple days, because I grew up with farm skills & the right mentality to handle the work.
This is not an argument for or against foreign workers, but an attempt to make the point that Americans often don't fit the bill.
I was recently laid off my job at John Deere. I would definitely be available to help farmers harvest their crops. Where do I apply here in Texas? I haven't seen any listings whatsoever at all.
Times are so tough that I've had to depend on my relatives and ex-husband to help me pay my bills. I would much rather be working, but I live in a small town and so far my job search goes like this...."We'll take you application, however, we're not hiring at the moment." If I hear that phrase one more time then I'm gonna jump off a bridge. (not literally, I might be crazy but I'm not suicidal.)
I just want to be able to make a paycheck so that I'm not a burden to my loved ones.
Pray for America, Pray for our President, and Pray for the economy to be so successful, that it exceeds our expectations!
Most people, myself included, kick and scream about how we want businesses (including these farms) to hire American workers. But I ask you this.....is it not a known fact that we want Americans to have these jobs AND have a decent living wage? Are we prepared to make our own personal sacrifices to make that happen?
Paying American workers more to pick a field requires us to pay more at the counter. Your groceries will cost more. I'm prepared to make that sacrifice for the good of America as a whole. In our country though, we have so many entities that are raging against higher costs and taxes. I personally think this is one of the big reasons we cannot solve the immigration issue.
So you have to ask yourself if you're willing to incur these expenses so that your neighbors who do this work can have a better life? I am but I've lost faith because of the fact that a lot of Americans have become self-preservationists who only think about what's good for them and their immediate family. A sad state of affairs.
I'd like to ask you to follow up on a few questions that could help us better understand the plight of the applicants, workers and business owners.
1) What are the requirements of the job, besides stooping and picking? Are they required to be unreasonably thorough when picking the fruits and vegetables? Are they really convicts, heathens and such that are under the scope of a gun?
2) Are the workers truly H2A or illegal? What makes them a better worker? Would any reasonable person consider them slave labor? Tell us all the details.
3) How much paperwork is there? Do the employers really follow the law? Who are the competitors who use undocumented labor? Please follow-up on the excuses and accusations. It would be greatly appreciated.
As an economist, I understand the fundamentals of supply and demand. They can cut both ways. The truth is that there is a total and real disconnect between employer and employee concerning what is fair. Both sides always want more of the pie. Unfortunately, I have a feeling you will find that greed is the real culprit and regard for the law lacking.
The documented laborer on the other hand, can speak english (maybe not perfectly) and is protected by the same laws that protect U.S. citizens. That's a big difference.
You are correct in pointing out that the statement "Mexicans are doing jobs that Americans won't do," is a fallacy. The only special skills undocumented worker do have are the ability to drop their pride at the employer's door and the a wherewithal to sell their soul to the devil (so to speak). And as long as we allow this travesty to continue, we will see our own opportunities and standard of living decline.
"Cheap" as you say, has many bedfellows.
Well said. And the same philosophy is spreading.
Cheap food comes at a terrible price--worker conditions,food quality,land degradation--but people who pay $5 for a cup of coffee will become enraged if they have to pay $5 more for groceries per week .
People have been duped by advertising to think what is necessary should be almost free (food,water,energy,etc.) so they will have plenty of money for the toys they are trying to sell.
Why?
Because all the legal employees were too lazy and too proud to be knee deep in a ditch cleaning it up. Or because they took a 20 minute weed/cigarette breaks every hour or so during work hours. Meanwhile the "illegals" where doing such a good job, they were even picking up cigarette butts off the side of the road, which we had to tell em not to do because "thats not what we got paid for". Illegals did the job way more effectively, went beyond what was required and did it without complains.
Im not for or against illegal immigration. This just my personal experience.
You underestimate the importance of a couple issues. For one thing, moving out to the country is not an easy thing for someone to do... and to move out there to take a job with no upward prospects in an area with no upward prospects? The only reason to take it is if your alternative is very long-term extreme poverty.
That label fits migrant workers... not most of the unemployed.
The very point of unemployment insurance is to keep workers rooted and keep them using their skills rather than flipping burgers and foreclosing on houses.
Even when it runs out, there are good reasons to muddle through until times are better... The alternative suggested here is to move to the country, cut off one's ties, and do work that will not enable them to grow in a place where there are no other opportunities.