Workers pick onions at a Vidalia onion farm in Lyons, Georgia. Farmers are concerned that the state’s new legislation banning illegal immigrants from the workforce will discourage migrant workers. David Goldman / AP hide caption
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David Goldman / AP
David Goldman / AP
In Georgia, farmers have almost everything they need for a successful early harvest, as pumpkins, bell peppers and peaches are ready for the market. But one thing is missing: someone to choose them. Fruit and vegetable growers blame the state’s new immigration reform law, saying it keeps migrant workers out.
In a news report, Georgia Public Broadcasting’s Melissa Stiers spoke to South Georgia Produce’s Steven Johnson, who says his harvest is ripe on the ground – but there aren’t enough people to pick it:
“We’re probably at 30 percent of the boxes of products we would normally get in the spring season,” he says. “And it’s getting ahead of you, and the markets are good, and you can’t get it. It’s very frustrating.”
Johnson says the farmers can’t find the job because workers who are normally from Florida are afraid of crossing the state line because of the new immigration reform bill the governor recently signed.
The new Georgian law, which comes into force in July, gives the police the power to check the citizenship status of people who have been stopped for a crime. In addition, employers must use a federal database to check the legality of new hires. The law has been compared to one in Arizona that was upheld by the US Supreme Court Thursday.
NPR’s Kathy Lohr reported earlier this week on the potential impact of the new law. Farm owners are increasingly vocal about the labor shortage, and state labor and agriculture authorities are looking for ways to address the situation.
Jeremy Redmon, who writes for the Atlanta Journal’s Constitution, reports that farm jobs “average $ 12.50 an hour. The state’s unemployment rate is now 9.9 percent.”
Agriculture is Georgia’s largest industry, grossing $ 1.1 billion, according to Redmon. He also spoke to Manuel De La Rosa, a recruiter who brings workers to a farm in southwest Georgia.
“He said these workers became scared after listening to Hispanic television news broadcasts comparing Georgia’s new law to a tough law passed by Arizona last year,” Redmon writes.
In Kathy Lohr’s report, she spoke to RT Stanley Jr., a farmer who says he can’t hire locals to do the job:
According to Stanley, seasoned employees can make up to $ 200 a day. He says he tried to hire locals to get the job done – work in the fields for eight hours or more to cut, bend, and lift in the stifling heat of Georgia.
“They just don’t want to do this hard work. And they’ll tell you quickly,” he says. “I have to come out and work two hours and they said, ‘I’m not doing this. It’s too hard.’ “”
It’s already difficult enough for Stanley to find workers, and he says the new restrictions are likely to make it worse.
“I have my livelihood at stake,” he says. “If I don’t harvest these onions, I’ll lose my farm.”