Why Farm Bureau Didn’t Support The House Labor Bill

In early December the House of Representatives 34 Republicans joined 226 Democrats and passed the Farm Workforce Modernization Act (H.R. 5038). The bill, the first House-passed agricultural labor reform since a comprehensive immigration plan in 1986, includes critical provisions to address dairy’s unique workforce needs. At the time, the American Farm Bureau Federation said they couldn’t support the bill. Recently, Dale Moore, executive vice president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, joined John Herath and Jim Wiesemeyer on a special edition of the DC Signal To Noise Podcast to explain why.
While the pathway to legal status for the current workforce and the year-round H2A change are critical, the organization and its members have some concerns.
1. The caps on visas. “The caps that were put on it are way too low,” Moore explained. “So that's one area where we'd like to address things.”
2. The wage rate and affordability of hiring employees through the revised H2A program outlined in the bill. “We are concerned about the wage and the adverse effect wage rate has different impacts in different states,” he said. “It's one thing if we have a great program, or even a good program that helps us get legal workers when we need them and streamlines the process, but if I as a farmer can't afford those workers because of the adverse effect wage rate, and the limitations that's put on that, then we've got another problem because, good program or not, it's got to be affordable.”
3. E-Verify. The bill requires all agriculture employers to use e-verify. “Our grassroots has spoken loud and clear to us over the last several years that until and unless we have a program in place that gives me access to a steady, readily available, affordable supply of workers, we’re not going to be supportive of any kind of e-verify,” Moore added.
Fortunately, Moore thinks the bill can either be fixed in the Senate or can be modified in a conference...MORE