ag labor

We’re roughly three weeks away from a new Congress being sworn in.  But before that happens, Dan Newhouse is hopeful the current Congress will take up the issue of Ag labor.  The Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which has cleared the U.S. House twice, currently...

The Farm Workforce Modernization Act awaits Senate action during the lame-duck session, and many in the farming community say this legislation is the closest meaningful immigration reform has come to the finish line in years.  Research by David Bier, Cato Institute associate director of immigration studies, said s farmers would save billions over the next few years if the Senate passes the legisla

U.S. produce growers require a lot of labor, but they face a labor crisis in getting enough workers in the field and the packing houses.  Little Bear Produce, a grower-packer-shipper from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, grows various food crops.  Br...

As the lame duck session of Congress works through the final weeks of 2022, many farm and agriculture groups are pressing lawmakers to finish immigration reform through the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.  The legislation, spearheaded by Central Washington’s Dan Newhouse and others, has already cleared the House, but has not been voted on in the Senate.  Representativ...

WAFLA’s new CEO says he’s looking forward to representing farm workers and an industry that has been a big part of his entire life.  Enrique Gastelum took over leadership of the organization this spring, and says one of his biggest priorities is showing those in the farming community, and those outside the industry, the important role H-2A plays.  Gastelum says the v...

Farmers need labor certainty from the H-2A guestworker program.  After years of working for reforms, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act is the best chance for agriculture to receive the labor it needs.  Shay Myers is a third generation farmer, and owner of Idaho’s Owyhee Produce a vertically integrated family farm, growing, packing and marketing nine different consumer crops, from asparagus to w

Industry experts anticipate the 2022 Washington apple crop will be 11% smaller year-over-year when harvest is complete.  But why is this year’s crop smaller?   The Washington state Farm Bureau’s April Clayton, an apple grower in north central Washington, said her crop is down about 33% this year.   “So, if you do ha...

Groups like the American Business Immigration Coalition Action, the National Milk Producers Federation, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, and many others involved in U.S. dairy held a press conference on labor shortages during World dairy Expo in Wisconsin...

Cattle ranchers in West Texas are strapping fit-bits on their cows.  The fitness trackers keep track of the herd's movements at a time when the industry is facing a labor shortage.  Instead of wrapping them around their hooves, they're worn as ear tags and collars.    The...

On Monday, USDA’s Economic Research Service reported data that shows the H-2A seasonal worker program has expanded over time.   U.S. agricultural employers who anticipate a shortage of U.S. domestic workers can fill seasonal farm jobs with temporary foreign workers through the H-2A visa program.  The Depa...