Labor Series 2018
AgHelp streamlines labor recruiting, job availability
Where do specialty crop operations find their next workforce? And, how does that workforce find them? Feliciano Paredes envisioned a mobile platform designed to address the agricultural labor shortage with a holistic approach. With that... more »
Growers: Far too few workers
Conditions may be improving slightly for the fruit growing community, based on responses to a labor survey conducted by Fruit Growers News, but 40 percent of respondents still experienced severe worker shortages in 2017. Most... more »
For growers using H-2A labor, housing tops difficulties
Growers using the H-2A visa program for seasonal labor say it’s working, but among the program’s most difficult rules are its housing requirements. At a panel discussion at the Northwest Michigan Orchard and Vineyard Show... more »
Rotten eggs, steak knives add to labor’s hidden housing costs
When an apple growers think of the many ways decay and mold can cost them money, most wouldn’t put a rotten egg high on that list, but that is the reality created by the current... more »
Seeing eye to eye with inspectors
In establishing relationships with Department of Labor (DOL) investigators, there is a fine line between being cooperative and being walked on. That is the message shared by Ann Margaret Pointer, attorney with Fisher & Phillips... more »
Assert your farm’s rights in dealing with inspectors
Preparing for a visit from a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) investigator who arrives on a farm to conduct an audit is a tedious, yet absolutely essential process. Presentations made by attorneys Ann Margaret Pointer... more »
Economist: Farm operators scramble to secure labor
Editor's note: This is part of a series of stories examining agriculture labor issues in 2018. The agriculture community is being impacted by the four S's: satisfy, stretching, substitution and supplementing, according to an agriculture... more »
Perdue addresses legislative options for ag labor reform
However discouraged growers feel about ag labor policy, the country’s top agriculture official is upbeat about the future. During a Feb. 1 visit to Michigan, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue discussed legislative work that’s shaping... more »