Obama’s executive ruling on immigration could cause labor shortages for farmers

With President Barack Obama’s executive action to block some 5 million illegal immigrants from deportation slated to begin in 2015, major labor shortages are being anticipated by farmers nationwide.

The Associated Press (AP) reported on Dec. 28 that California farmers may be hit the the hardest as California is the largest grower of fruits, vegetables and nuts, and 330,000 of its farmworkers account for the largest share of the 2.1 million nationwide.

Opponents of the deportation measure believe that thousands of the state’s farmworkers, who make up a significant portion of those who will benefit, may choose to leave the uncertainty of their seasonal jobs for steady, year-around work building homes, cooking in restaurants and cleaning hotel rooms.

“This action isn’t going to bring new workers to agriculture,” said Jason Resnick, vice president and general counsel of the powerful trade association Western Growers. “It’s possible that because of this action, agriculture will lose workers without any mechanism to bring in new workers.”

Although details of the president’s immigration policy have yet to be worked out, the AP reported that Resnick believes that the agricultural workforce has been declining for a decade. Today, the association estimates there is a 15 to 20 percent shortage of farmworkers, which is driving the industry to call for substantial immigration reform from the U.S. Congress, such as a sound guest worker program.

“Hopefully there will be the opportunity for comprehensive immigration reform,” said Karen Ross, secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture. “That’s the right thing to do for this country.”

Armando Elenes, national vice president of the United Farm Workers, told the AP that while farmers may face a setback, Obama’s order is good for workers, who support families and fear that any day they may be pulled over driving to work and deported.