Oceana County businesses feeling pinch of shortage

By Federico Martinez

Billows of smoke were rising from the 50 acres of asparagus fields awaiting harvest in Shelby last month.

Farmer Ray Selig scurried several feet away and ignited another mound of straw. His wife, Eileen zig-zagged through the rows of asparagus to set off a new blaze.

Again and again, the Seligs and their children ran across the fields to create new brush fires. It was a desperate 3 a.m. race in late May to keep a deadly frost from settling in and destroying their crops.

But the frost wasn't the biggest threat facing the Seligs' livelihood.

In recent weeks, dozens of West Michigan farmers, including the Seligs, were forced to destroy thousands of acres of asparagus during peak harvest season because they couldn't find enough seasonal farm workers to pick their crops.

"I'll lose my farm if I don't pick those crops," a weary Ray Selig sighed several hours after fending off that early morning frost. "(The asparagus) is just lying out in the field."

Worker shortage in the fields is a problem, that if it continues throughout the summer, could ruin many farmers' livelihoods, escalate produce prices and have a devastating effect on Michigan's already wobbly economy, state agricultural officials say.

Agriculture is Michigan's second-largest industry behind the auto industry.

Asparagus has to be picked right away, otherwise it grows too large and becomes nearly impossible to cut, farmers say. Once aspargus is cut, it cannot be picked until it regrows. The usual peak harvesting period is the first three weeks of May.

"I've had to chop 100 acres because we just don't have enough help," said Steve Dillingham, whose 600 acres in Hart make him the state's largest asparagus grower. "It was really hard. When you mow the asparagus, you're mowing your livelihood. I'm surprised I didn't have a coronary."

Approximately 90,000 migrant workers and their families come to Michigan each year. But those numbers have noticably dwindled in recent years, farmers and state officials agree.

There are many reasons for this. Most migrant workers are U.S. citizens and are opting for more stable, better-paying jobs, such as construction, landscaping and restaurant work, officials say. High gas prices, concerns about immigration and not enough housing are other problems discouraging migrants from coming to Michigan, they say.

"The problem is there's no new workers coming up here," said Steve Dillingham, who has operated the Hart family farm since 1969. "One of the most gratifying things I see is when I visit former (workers) in the Valley and they are citizens now, and they own their own homes and are doing well.

"We all naturally want things better for our families. But it doesn't help me recruit more help."

Many growers like Selig and Dillingham are pushing for a change in federal immigration laws that would make it easier for U.S. employers to hire more immigrants from other countries. Current programs are very strict and limit the number of foriegn workers a business can hire, said Dillingham.

Selig says there are too many government programs that pay people for not working. He'd like to see more of an effort to reward laborers for working.

Not everyone is convinced that importing more workers is the right solution. Some migrant advocates in West Michigan believe farmers simply need to change the way they do business.

Stronger recruiting efforts, better wages, and improved housing and work conditions are some ways farmers can attract more laborers, said Juanita Estrada, co-chairwoman of the West Michigan Migrant Services Council in Hart.

"There's no overtime in the fields," said Estrada. "They're out in the sun all day, use outhouses and drink bottled water. It makes more sense to work in canning factories."

Estrada and others say migrant labor in Oceana County began to decline about four years ago.

"We had a rough crop season and workers arrived with no opportunity to make money," said Estrada. "They were very discouraged."

There are no typical wages for migrant workers. A worker's pay depends on the grower, the crop being picked and whether the laborer is being paid hourly, by the pound, or by the crate. Farmers who illegally employ migrants who aren't U.S. citizens often pay wages below minimum wage.

Instead of mowing his asparagus, Selig decided to try another route this spring. He hired local residents referred to his farm by the county unemployment office. The experiment largely has been a disaster.

"I've went through 20 people in less than 10 days," said Selig, who has been trying to run his farm with 3-5 workers each day. A normal work crew during the month of May would be 24 people.

"I had five people who promised to be here at 6 a.m., but didn't show up," said Selig during a recent workday. "Some of them worked a couple of hours and just walked away from it."

He recently had to fire about a half-dozen seasonal workers after they damaged his crops. The inexperienced workers damaged the plants by cutting them wrong and running over them.

"They ruined about 50 acres," said Selig. "I would have been better off if I'd just mowed it."