Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/52389
Refugees go through three sets of strict interviews with the state department as well as security checks and medical screening. They cannot be admitted strictly for economic reasons. They also must come from designated countries. Many come from Southeast Asia, Africa, Iran, Afghanistan, former Soviet Union countries, or Cuba. Kadel said most refugees hit the Mark Kadel ground running. People from Asia usually know how to do agricultural work because they've been doing it all their lives. Some refugees are doctors or engi- neers who found themselves on the wrong side of the political equation and had to flee, but others are illiterate in their own language. Most are somewhere in between. "They are here to stay," Kadel said. "They get an employment authorization card the moment they step on U.S. soil. They're good workers. They want the same thing we all want—they want a job to support their families and put their children in school for the first time in their lives. They want to start their lives over again." Since the refugees come from various countries, World Relief can't always provide growers with large numbers of workers from the same ethnic group, but it does try to put together a team to suit the grower. Housing Jim Hazen, general manager at Broetje Orchards at Prescott, Washington, said his company has worked with World Relief's Pasco office to recruit refugees over the past five years. A difficulty has been how to house them, as the company's worker housing is fully occupied with a waiting list. Broetje has 1,000 full-time employees and needs an addi- tional 1,000 to 1,500 workers during harvest. It has hired fewer than two dozen refugees each year. "It's more complicated than I think people realize because these people are dis- placed," Hazen said. Some lived in urban areas in their own countries and some in rural areas, and he feels there's a better chance of success if they can be placed where they're most comfortable. Hazen said Broetje is considering building additional on-site housing for refugee workers or building housing in Pasco, the nearest city. For workers in off-site housing, the company would provide transportation to the orchard. "To have access to people who are interested and hungry for jobs, I think it's a small investment to make in order to tap into that," Hazen said. Broetje has encouraged World Relief to contact the company when they have refugees who will be located in the Tri-Cities area and need work. "We've let World Relief know that we will try to accommodate them as best we can, but it has to be a situation, we've learned, where the work needs to fit what they're used to doing." Broetje has had refugees from Somalia in the past. The last couple of years they've been mainly from Burma. Language can be a barrier, Hazen said, but creative ways can be found to make it work. A group of Burmese workers at the orchard, where the work force is primarily His- panic, has been more interested in learning Spanish than English, he said. Hispanic supervisors are visiting the Burmese workers in their free time to help them learn Spanish. Labor contractors Refugees can be hired as domestic workers by employers using the H-2A program, in which case they work under the H-2A contract. They can also work for labor contractors. Contractor Jon Warling of Mar-Jon Labor, in Othello, Washington, said he used refugees for one grower, who had housing available and wanted to try the program. There are no strings attached like there are with the H-2A program, though it does require some additional supervision. There have been instances where the workers could not communicate with orchard supervisors—not because the refugees didn't speak English, but because the supervisors spoke only Spanish. Where the refugees don't speak good English, it's been difficult to identify someone among them who can act as an interpreter but also has supervisory skills, Warling said. "You have to work to find people to translate who aren't scared to tell their fellow coun- trymen they're not doing something right. Those who speak the best English don't always make the best supervisors." Another labor contractor, Mike Atkinson, president of Atkinson Staffing in Hermiston, Oregon, said his experience with hiring refugees exceeded expectations. "I was appre- hensive," he said. "But I was surprised. They were from Sudan and spoke really good English." For more information about World Relief's refugee program, contact Kadel at mkadel@wr.org, phone (509) 232-2814, or Chaban at dchaban@wr.org, phone (509) 232-2816. • www.goodfruit.com Rears Manufacturing Company 800.547.8925 GOOD FRUIT GROWER JANUARY 15, 2012 27 Record Ticket Sales for 2011 The Raffle earned nearly 20,000 dollars for WAEF! A heartfelt thanks to all who contributed to the Washington Apple Education Foundation 2011 Friendraising Drive Jason Matson of Matson Fruit Company in Selah took home the silent auction prize, a Rears OMF756 orchard flail. Thank You! Christenson Farms of Tieton was the winning ticket holder for the WAEF benefit raffle prize: a 2011 Rears TTN Powerblast sprayer. Janet Strand Selby, a representative of Christenson Farms, is shown here with Mike Rear of Rears Manufacturing Company.