Ag worker recruitment program off to slow start

A new program that went into effect on Jan. 1 to help Colorado’s food growers more easily find laborers to produce their crops has stalled, apparently due to the faltering economy.

The program, created by House Bill 1325 adopted by the Legislature last year, is designed to assist growers in hiring non-immigrant laborers from Mexico and other countries.

But as of May 1 the program had signed up no growers, according to Larry Lemmons, a spokesman for the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

Lemmons said he believes the lack of participation might be due to tighter grower budgets and an availability of local labor to draw upon.

“I think there are some concerns with the program with the current economic situation,” he said. “They’re finding more U.S. workers willing to take these jobs than in the past.”

However, Lemmons said he had no firm proof of growers employing more native workers beyond anecdotal stories.

So far, this growing season is shaping up to be very different from previous years, when growers faced labor shortages amid a wave of anti-illegal immigration sentiment.

The “Colorado Non-Immigrant Agricultural Seasonal Worker Pilot Program” was supposed to streamline the sometimes cumbersome federal H-2A program that growers use to obtain workers from outside the United States.

The pilot program is limited to 1,000 workers in its first year and an additional 1,000 for each year of its five-year lifespan, with up to 5,000 workers allowed in its final year.

Recruiting agents lined up

Lemmons said the program has been successful in lining up and pre-approving nine private companies experienced in connecting growers with workers in other countries. He said the pre-approved agents should help growers have more confidence in the program.

“I think employers are very interested (in foreign labor) but don’t really know the agents that are out there,” he said. “One of the goals is to allay these issues and let them know the agents are prequalified.”

One of those companies is Allott Immigration Law Firm in Centennial. Owner Ann Allott said she’s been involved with non-immigrant labor for years but this year is very different. “Frankly, we’re not doing many (H-2A placements) right now,” she said. “It’s a pretty thin market.”

Allott said she believes high unemployment is resulting in more growers able to find labor in their local area. But Allott said that’s a short-term solution at best.

“There are Americans applying for these jobs but they don’t keep them because the minute they get another job, they’re gone,” she said. “The turnover is huge.”

Allott said she’s “stunned” by what’s been happening so far this crop season. “No people are going through the (H-2A) process,” she said. “It’s going to be interesting to see how this turns out.”

Some improvising

Some growers are improvising. Jack Tarrab, an employee of Grant Farms northwest of Wellington, said he’s been doing the H-2A recruitment for the specialty crop business. “We had been working with a produce company out of Georgia that does its own recruitment,” he said. “But with me being bilingual, this year I was able to go to Mexico and get the people we needed.”

Tarrab said he was aware of the new Colorado recruitment assistance program but Grant Farms chose not to get involved with it. “It’s too expensive – they charge $100 per person,” he said, noting that growers are already responsible for paying and housing and transporting workers. “We provide transportation both northbound and southbound and make sure they go back when the season is over.”

Tarrab said Grant Farms is not hiring local laborers. “Local people, they’re available but they don’t want to do it,” he said.

Meanwhile, Lemmons said he believes most growers are finding workers without signing up for recruiting assistance. And although the program was also designed to reduce the flow of illegal immigrants, it tends to take a hands-off approach.

For example, while the state pre-qualifies the recruiting agents, it does deal directly with foreign governments in lining up workers. And the state does not interact with employers who choose to find their own workers.

Lemmons said the big hurdle for the program this year is the economy. “The additional cost is difficult in these economic times,” he said. “As far as enrollment, I don’t see anybody paying the extra money this year.”

The big question is whether growers will step up and enroll when the economy improves, or if they will stick with their own less-expensive recruitment devices and stay away even after things get better.

Steve Porter covers agribusiness for the Northern Colorado Business Report. He can be reached at 970-221-5400, ext. 225, or at sporter@ncbr.com.

on Facebook on LinkedIn