The Phony Farm Labor Crisis

[roo_ster]

http://www.cnbc.com/id/48847903.com

It’s become something of an annual tradition.

Every summer, newspapers around the country roll out stories of a labor shortage on farms. The fruit is going to rot in the orchards, crops will go unpicked, agricultural communities will be devastated unless something is done, the stories predict.

Here’s a pretty typical version of the story, as told by the San Francisco Chronicle:

    But the American Farm Bureau Federation and its California chapter believe there is plenty of reason to worry.

    "There have been instances in which growers had to disc up whole crops because they didn't have the workforce to harvest," said Kristi Boswell, the Farm Bureau's director of congressional relations. She points to Georgia, where whole tomato fields were plowed under last year. "The workforce has been decreasing in the last two to three years, but last year it was drastic."

    And farmers are saying this year is even worse.

In recent years, we’ve seen just how resilient this narrative really is. You’d think the idea of a labor shortage in the midst of on ongoing job drought would be laughed out of town. (Read more: When Are You Retiring?...How Does Never Sound?)

But somehow the story keeps getting told and taken seriously. According to the Farm Labor Shortage Mythologists, American citizens are just too lazy and would rather go jobless than work on a farm.

Do read the whole thing and follow the links. Plenty of actual data, too.

The bottom line regarding this sort of produce is that the cost of hired/seasonal farm labor is a small part of the cost to the consumer.  Double or triple the labor cost and the consumer sees a head of lettuce go up a few cents.  Other factors are much greater WRT the end user cost: weather, inflation, fuel costs, etc.

[Fitz]

A farm labor shortage sounds reasonable to me.

I've been saying for several years that part of the problem with America is Americans' unwillingness to do manual labor. Everyone wants to work in a nice cool office.

Most of the people I've met who whine about not being able to find a job, COULD find a job if they lowered their expectations a bit. When i got off active duty I had a rough time finding work, so I took what I could get. I worked some crap jobs until I found what I wanted.

I've heard many people say things like "I don't WANT to government to give me a handout. I WANT a job!" Meanwhile, there are farm jobs, oil jobs, and food service jobs going unfilled.

It's infuriating.

[kgbsquirrel]

Most of the people I've met who whine about not being able to find a job, COULD find a job if they lowered their expectations a bit.

^
This.


My employment history:
Busboy
Strawberry Picker
Fast Food
Navy (Deck Hand)
Navy (Crypto)
Private Security

Didn't start out with a nice sit-and-swivel AC'd job. I think my Mom (who grew up on a farm in the 40's) had a pretty good saying for this situation: "Never be ashamed if you have to resort to flipping burgers, it's honest work."

[roo_ster]

Yeah, but not the point. 

Point being, despite the degradation of our culture and the work ethic, that enough folks are being found to work these farms...and at record profits...despite fewer illegals in many of the states.

[Tallpine]

Trouble is that the unemployed folks mostly don't live anywhere near the farm work, nor is there housing available.

Might not be the low pay or the hard work so much as sleeping in your car or on the ground. 

Might be a good life following the crops if one had a small RV.

Working in an office ain't all that great either.

I've done a whole bunch of different work in my life so far.  It would almost be easier to list the things that I haven't done 

[brimic]

Hasn't the Obama admin changed the laws on child labor concern ag jobs as well?
When I was a kid under 16, I made some pretty good money (for a preteen-young teen) working for a seed farm detassling corn, a Christmas tree farm trimming trees, and a veal farm building stalls. Yes there were migrant workers in these operations as well, but probably only 1 for every 20 or so kids. A lot of other kids my age did similar work- bailing hay, picking fruits/vegetables, etc.
I'm not even sure that kids 12-15 years old can even legally do these jobs anymore.


The 'cheap' labor we get from open borders is very expensive when you consider the cost of all of the negatives that also cross the border.

[Fitz]

Trouble is that the unemployed folks mostly don't live anywhere near the farm work, nor is there housing available.

Might not be the low pay or the hard work so much as sleeping in your car or on the ground. 

Might be a good life following the crops if one had a small RV.

Working in an office ain't all that great either.

I've done a whole bunch of different work in my life so far.  It would almost be easier to list the things that I haven't done 

The farm work was only one example

However, I've moved cross country to avoid drawing unemployment. If I can do it, others can too.

[MillCreek]

Hasn't the Obama admin changed the laws on child labor concern ag jobs as well?
When I was a kid under 16, I made some pretty good money (for a preteen-young teen) working for a seed farm detassling corn, a Christmas tree farm trimming trees, and a veal farm building stalls. Yes there were migrant workers in these operations as well, but probably only 1 for every 20 or so kids. A lot of other kids my age did similar work- bailing hay, picking fruits/vegetables, etc.
I'm not even sure that kids 12-15 years old can even legally do these jobs anymore.


The 'cheap' labor we get from open borders is very expensive when you consider the cost of all of the negatives that also cross the border.

If I recall correctly, and I may not be, I think a lot of the child labor restrictions have been done by OSHA and various state labor safety agencies. 

[Scout26]

If I recall correctly, and I may not be, I think a lot of the child labor restrictions have been done by OSHA and various state labor safety agencies. 

Nope, it was the feds, but the rule(s) got scrapped:

http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/224169-obama-administration-scraps-child-labor-rules-for-farms


Just remember, prior the the introduction of the minimum wage, there was no such thing as unemployment.  (The market always seemed to find jobs for everyone who wanted one.)


And yes.  I de-tasseled corn one summer.  And worked at McDonalds on the weekends.

[Jamie B]

I'm smelling a rat somewhere - I saw head lettuce yesterday @ Sam's for $1.58! Insanity.