Texas farmers had reported that they had already started to loose money for the lack of workers?

Question

texas farmers had said that unless there is a migratory reform allowing those who are here to stay and those who want to come to come they will be in real problems .

California and Florida are having the same problems

what its your opinion about this ???
do u care to pay several times more ???
how do u think those who are american and cannot afford to pay more feel about having to pay for this ???

all tripplediggit does is to be sit on his ...... in front of the computer .

the plan to make harder to cross the border is working . however as i said
california , texas florida are already reporting loses .

u may not have a problem about paying several times more but think about those who live day by day and u say to care about .

Answer 1

Well it is a major problem all the racist anti immigrants do not want to deal with, and neither does the Republican House!

Labor shortage could mean crisis for ag

Ali Bay
Capital Press Staff Writer

DAVIS – Growers and farm labor contractors are scrambling to find enough workers to harvest their crops this fall and some say the worker shortage is escalating to crisis proportions.

Western Growers, the agricultural trade association that represents growers, packers and shippers of fresh fruits and vegetables in California and Arizona, is asking government officials to recognize the labor crisis.

Western Growers estimates that in the Central Valley alone, there is a shortage of about 70,000 farmworkers.

“It’s quickly reaching a crisis level and it’s possibly already done so,” said Tim Chelling, a spokesman for the industry group.

Chelling said growers are likely to lack the field workers needed to harvest some of the fall and winter crops in California. If crops are left in the field, an economic crisis will likely follow, he said.

Western Growers is appealing to the Department of Homeland Security and state governments in California and Arizona to help provide a stable work force for agriculture, while still securing the nation’s borders.

“The time to act has now arrived,” said Tom Nassif, president of Western Growers. “We are not asking for action to resolve the nation’s overall immigration crisis in the next couple of weeks. We know that’s simply not possible and completely unrealistic. We are asking for officials to acknowledge this labor crisis in agriculture and provide immediate remedies so that farmers, consumers and state economies don’t suffer what amounts to completely avoidable economic damage.”

There are many reasons why California doesn’t have the number of workers it has in the past, said Luawanna Halstrom, general manager and chief operating officer of Harry Singh and Sons, a company that produces vine-ripened tomatoes near San Diego.

Tighter border control and random raids have reduced the number of workers crossing the borders. The construction business is booming in California, pulling workers away from agriculture and into higher-paying jobs. Mexican workers are also opting to work in Canada under that country’s guest worker program.

“Agriculture is crying out for a legal means to hire labor,” said Halstrom, who also serves on the labor committee for the American Farm Bureau Federation. “That’s what we need. We’ve never been in more dire straits.”

Earlier this year, federal lawmakers introduced the Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits, and Security Act of 2005, better known as the AgJOBS Bill, which could provide farmers a stable workforce.

While the bill is widely supported by agriculture, a similar piece of legislation failed last year due to lack of support from President George W. Bush and the Republican leadership.

The only way Halstrom says she has been able to find a consistent seasonal workforce for her business is by relying on outdated immigration policies and providing housing for employees.

“It is extremely difficult,” she said. “It has affected our ability to farm the way we normally would. It has cost us.”

Right now, the labor shortage is impacting the Central Valley’s raisin industry, where thousands of acres are waiting to be harvested.

The Nisei Farmer’s League has been trying to find labor anywhere it can to help farmers – even considering using parolees, a plan that didn’t work.

Nisei has also appealed for help from the Employment Development Department offices in the Central Valley, but so far the state agency has only been able to call up the names of several thousand unemployed workers who might be able to work in the agricultural industry.

“We just can’t get the crops harvested,” said Manuel Cunha, president of the Fresno-based group. “We’ve got to develop immigration programs that fit the industry,” he said.

Halstrom said the current labor shortage reminds her of the days following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center.

Nearly 75 percent of her workforce didn’t pass detailed checks following the attacks. Although the company immediately looked into utilizing the existing federal guest worker program, which many say doesn’t suit agriculture’s needs, it took 45 days to get enough workers to continue harvesting their perishable commodity.

“And then when (the workers) got here, it took them two weeks just to clear out the rotten fruit,” Halstrom said. “We lost $2.5 million in a 45-day period. It was absolutely devastating.”

Halstrom hopes politicians will hear agriculture’s call for help.

“I think this country needs to understand that a critical element of its national security is to have a safe and reliable food source,” she said. “If there’s an interruption (in our food supply), the country has basically a seven-day supply of food.”

That’s reason enough not to continue sweeping the immigration problem under the carpet, she said.

Answer 2

Based on Census Bureau data, this study finds that, when all taxes paid (direct and indirect) and all costs are considered, illegal households created a net fiscal deficit at the federal level of more than $10 billion in 2002. $20 billion in 2004. We also estimate that, if there was an amnesty for illegal aliens, the net fiscal deficit would grow to nearly $29 billion."
"Phillip Martin, an economist at the University of California, Davis, has demolished the argument that a crackdown on illegals would ruin it, or be a hardship to consumers. Most farming — livestock, grains, etc. — doesn't heavily rely on hired workers. Only about 20 percent of the farm sector does, chiefly those areas involving fresh fruit and vegetables.

The average "consumer unit" in the U.S. spends $7 a week on fresh fruit and vegetables, less than is spent on alcohol, according to Martin. On a $1 head of lettuce, the farm worker gets about 6 or 7 cents, roughly 1/15th of the retail price. Even a big run-up in the cost of labor can't hit the consumer very hard.

Martin recalls that the end of the bracero guest-worker program in the mid-1960s caused a one-year 40 percent wage increase for the United Farm Workers Union. A similar wage increase for legal farm workers today would work out to about a 10-dollar-a-year increase in the average family's bill for fruit and vegetables. Another thing happened with the end of the bracero program: The processed-tomato industry, which was heavily dependent on guest workers and was supposed to be devastated by their absence, learned how to mechanize and became more productive."


If every illegal alien here today currently left America, the immediate economic impact would be insignificant and over the long haul, the impact would likely be negligible.

Might hurt a commerial farm or two--but most farmers could care less. Americans won't hurt a bit. Learn about farms and quit sprouting ignorance!

Answer 3

The Strategy Of Competetive Marketing
Is To Keep An Even Price/Cost
On Products And Services

Removing ILLEGAL ALIENS
Will Provide An Opportunity
For The Union Movements To Grow Again

Hiring American Citizen Labor
Will Cost The Competitors More In Wages
And Less In Profits

Growers And Shippers That Will Not Hire Americans
At A Fair Living Wage
Will Have Rotting Produce In Their Fields And Trucks
Many Of Them Will Go Out Of Business

Growers That Abide By The Law
Will Sell Their Product At A Lesser Profit
And Still Be Very Happy With The Reward
Perhaps Even EXPANDING PERCENTAGES
In The Long Run
Due To Farms Going Out Of Business (Described Above)

These Competetive Marketers Will Survive And Flourish
Their Products Will Get To Market
And Consumers Didnt Have To Cry None For The Wear

Manufacturers And Food Service Markets
Will Feel Similar Effects

SO WHAT ???

If 50 Percent Of All The McDonalds And KFCs Closed??
WHO WOULD CARE???
Do We NEED A McDonalds EVERY Mile And A Half??

If 15 - 20 Percent
Of All The Lettuce And Tomato Farms
(The Ones SUPPLYIN The Fast Food)
Went Out Of Business
WHO WOULD CARE???

I'll Tell You Who Would Care
The ILLEGAL ALIENS Workin At Em
The Owners Of The Place(s)
And The Corporate CEOs That Have Infiltrated
EVERY Last Streetcorner In The Nation

I Wouldnt Care If They Closed Them All

Each Industry Has SEVERAL
Foreign AND Domestic Competitors
Some Competitors Are Smarter Than Others
And Will Make The Appropriate Sacrifices
To Keep His Business ALIVE And/Or Even EXPAND It
Without Cutting His Own Throat
(PSSSST.....Whispering......
Thats Why The PROFIT MARGINS Are So HIGH ....
To ALLOW For Fluctuations In The Market
AND Remain Competetive)

Small Businesses
And MOM And POP Outfits
And Family Owned/Operated Cottage Industries
Might Even Make A Stand Again
And Have A Fighting Chance
Of Eeking Out A Meager Living
(Remember The Good Ol Days?)

If You Really Believe That
Removing 20 Million ILLEGAL ALIENS From The US
Will Cause A "GREAT DEPRESSION"
You Need To Do Your Math Better

There Are 300 Million Consumers In Our Economy
Removing 20 Million Non-Taxpayers From The Economy
Wil Provide A Boost And A Relief
On Taxpayers
On Public Services
On Medical Facilities
On Education Systems

The 18 Million Americans
That Are Out Of Work And Looking For Jobs
Can And Will Jump In To Fill The Jobs
That ILLEGAL ALIENS Have LAID CLAIM To For So Long

Teenagers, College Students, And Housewives
Will Return To The Workforce
And Get A FAIR WAGE To Work These Jobs
FAIR And COMPETETIVE To OUR ECONOMY
NOT Mexicos Economy

Theres Out Of Work HS Girls That Can And Will
Babysit / Child Care
Work In Fast Food
Cashier At The Market Or Mart
For A FAIR WAGE
To SAVE UP FOR COLLEGE TUITION

Theres Out Of Work HS Boys That Can And Will
Mow Lawns
Wash Dishes
Wash Cars
For A FAIR WAGE
To SAVE UP FOR COLLEGE TUITION

Au Paire Girl Anyone?

Theres Millions Of American College Students
That Need The In State Tuition
Granted To ILLEGAL ALIENS
And The Children Of ILLEGALs

Tuitions A BI*TCH
Especially If You Cant Get A Part Time Job
As A High School Or College Student
To Supplement Book Fees And Find Affordable Housing

The ILLEGAL ALIEN Has That Job
The ILLEGAL ALIEN Has That Tuition Paid
The ILLEGAL ALIEN Has That Affordable Housing


Domestic Maids / Housekeepers ??
Really SUX For Taxpaying Domestic Students

There's Millions Of Housewives
That Can And Will Step Up To Become
Fast Food Workers
Delivery Drivers
Merry Maids
Hotel Maids
Waitresses
Cashiers
For A FAIR WAGE
To SAVE UP FOR THEIR KIDS COLLEGE TUITION

(Easy Girls, I KNOW You Are ALL Capable
Of MUCH, MUCH More
I'm Citing Examples Here)

Ever Heard Of A TWO INCOME FAMILY???
That Works At ALL Levels
From Corporate America
To The Trailer Parks

Theres 18 MILLION Americans Out Of Work
Looking For Full Time And Part Time Jobs
Transportation Drivers (Taxi / Delivery / Freight)
Food Service
(Cooks / Dishwashers / Waiters)
Landscaping
Construction (All Phases)
Machinists
Butchers
Bakers
Candlestick Makers
For A FAIR And COMPETETIVE WAGE

Theres 20 Million ILLEGAL ALIENS Working Those Jobs
At A Depressed Wage

Theres Nearly 3.5 Million
HOMELESS Jobless Americans

Nearly 1/2 Of Them Are US VETERANS
Do You Think He Might Like
A Low Paying, Entry Level Job
Like Swingin A Hammer ?
Or Pushing A Lawnmower ?
Or Cooking / Washing Dishes In A Restaurant ?

Considering Hes An American Vet
Dont We Owe The Job To HIM
Instead Of An ILLEGAL ALIEN???

About 39 Percent Of The Homeless
Have CHILDREN With Them

Do You Think A Construction Job
Or A Job Pushing A Lawnmower
Or As A Janitor In An Office
And A Page Or Two Of HUD HOUSING
Could Help The Father Of A Homeless American
With A Child?

We (Citizens) Dont ALL Have College Educations
And High Skills
There Are Millions Of HS Dropouts
That Need The Low Paying Entry Level Jobs
That 20 Million
Uneducated, Unskilled, ILLEGAL Aliens Have

AMERICA FIRST

There Is A $$ 28.5 Billion Dollar Defecit
In Public Schools Nationwide

$$ 39 Billion In Remittances To Mexico Annually
Instead Of Paying Taxes
Once The US Dollar Leaves The Country
Its GONE From The US Economy

Greenspan Is An Idiot

Answer 4

Good, any business relying on breaking the law to stay in business, does not deserve to be in business, and I hope they go under or find a legal way to stay in business. Stop with the price increases. Prices will never raise as high as you pro-illegals would like everyone to believe.

Answer 5

They need to start hiring more actively in the United States, then, or figure out how to go forward without relying on illegal hiring practices. Our country's got 280 million legal residents, plus guests, this one's all about hiring practices.

Answer 6

I think only farms that use Illegal labor will hurt. And they are a small percentage. So we will not be hurt by it at all. All prices will go up regardless but not because of your reasoning.

Answer 7

Anybody that wants cheap labor will tell you any hard luck story there is. Show us some actual stat's on this. Show me their actual loses in black and what they claim to be losing ?

Answer 8

I was under the impression it was due to the drought??
At least from the reports I have read.........

Answer 9

we need to have all the illegals out because it is costing us more in our tax dollars because they dont pay taxes.

Answer 10

My opinion is HA HA HA! I would like the farmers to suffer a little while! The government will soon realize how much the immigrants are needed. I dont want to pay more for produce. And I think the rest of America is with me on that.