YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC April 26, 2006
Big crop forecast could mean labor shortage Grower representatives told visiting state agency directors Tuesday the cherry and apple crops will likely be large this year, which could result in a serious labor shortage. "We don't know what's going to happen yet but we do know the trend lines are going down for the work force and up for demand," Mike Gempler, executive director of the Yakima-based Washington Growers League, said in a telephone interview after meeting with three agency directors. Last year, a serious drought kept the harvests small, averting a shortage. This year, water is abundant. Employment Security Commissioner Karen Lee said that while her agency has concerns about a possible farm-labor shortage, there isn't one yet. "We're not seeing that right now," Lee said at a news conference in the Yakima office of the Department of Labor & Industries. Lee and two other executive agency directors, Gary Weeks of L&I and Valoria Loveland of Agriculture, met privately with grower representatives and farm-worker advocates to discuss the labor situation. They said Gov. Chris Gregoire sent them to hear from both sides "on the ground." "The governor felt this was the best way to learn whether there really is a shortage," Weeks said. Weeks said grower representatives told him they will know by the end of May or beginning of June whether labor will be sufficient. There are about 91,000 agricultural workers in the state, about a third of which are seasonal tree-fruit pickers. The question of labor supply is inherently touchy. Growers have an interest in an abundant number of workers, which lowers wages, while workers prefer a tight job market, which raises them. Intervening in the market to bring the two into balance can go awry. In the late 1980s, the Washington Apple Commission and then-Gov. Booth Gardner put out the call for workers because of a shortage early in the cherry season. But by September, hot weather had ruined much of the apple crop and there were more workers than jobs. Many seasonal employees slept in school gyms or by the river, relying on charity for food. In the last two years, Central Washington growers have become increasingly worried about the labor supply, citing tightened borders and government crackdowns on companies that hire undocumented workers. This spring, some orchards have reported that pruners are in short supply. California growers are sounding a similar theme, saying that construction work has been drawing workers from the hot, dusty fields of Brussels sprouts, artichokes and beans. Gempler said if California has problems, Washington likely will, too. Lee, whose agency runs the state job referral system called WorkSource, said changes have been made this year to encourage growers to use it. Growers complain that referrals don't have the skills they need or don't really want to work in agriculture. "Some growers here haven't used WorkSource in a while," Lee conceded. "But we are marketing it differently this year." She said WorkSource will send one of its employees with job candidates to the work site to make sure there is a match. She also said growers need to be specific about the skills they want in their job order. Dan Fazio, director of employer services for the Washington Farm Bureau, said the meeting produced some "creative ideas," such as "scrubbing" the unemployment insurance rolls to make sure a grower isn't paying benefits to someone while also trying to find workers. Lessening the regulatory hurdles on allowing high school-age students to work was also discussed. Gempler said WorkSource referrals can make only a small dent in the labor supply. The Northwest Growers Association, a nonprofit farm-labor contractor run by the Growers League, is seeking at least 1,000 guest workers under the federal government's temporary visa program.
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