Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/298602
20 MAY 1, 2014 GOOD FRUIT GROWER www.goodfruit.com the workers are transported from the border by bus to the farm. This process incurs a whole host of charges, including fees for the agent and the U.S. Consulate. The employer must pay for all these, plus all travel and incidental expenses during the trip. Turnkey program Fazio said WAFLA has devised a turnkey program whereby it handles all the arrangements, does all the complex paperwork, makes all the various payments, charters the bus to deliver workers to the farm, and charges the farmer a single fee, which usually amounts to about $1,200 to $1,300 per person. "The employer wants the workers to show up at their farm on the date that they need them and make one payment to WAFLA," Fazio said. "They want us to do everything. They want the worker to be their responsi- bility from the day the contract starts until it ends and our responsibility to get them back home at the end of the contract." The association, which has five employees working on the program, makes sure the bus is at the farm on the last day of the contract and that all the workers get on board. Often, they are transported to another farm for another contract. Fazio said once workers have visas for the first contract, it is rarely a problem for WAFLA to obtain a sec- ond or third visa for them, although the worker has the option of declining and going home. "Once they get a visa the first time, renewal is no prob- lem," Fazio said. "The authorities don't care. They just care that the visa has been approved." The H-2A program stipulates that workers cannot be at a single farm for more than ten months. However, they can work under multiple contracts for up to three years, with a maximum of 30 days between contracts. Then they have to go home for six months. Stable workforce What's the best thing about the program for the employers? "What they love is they have a workforce," Fazio responded. A crackdown on illegal border crossings combined with a lack of comprehensive immigration reform has prevented migrant workers from moving back and forth between the two countries as they used to do. Growers who use the program appreciate that it gives them a stable workforce. While the H-2A contract is in effect, the farmer's domestic workers must be paid the same rate, which can be used as an incentive to hire and retain people. "They can actually now say to the domestic workers, 'I want you to work for me June 1 to November 1. I can offer you better pay and benefits,'" he said. Although the costs of the program are high, some of that money can be recouped through tax benefits, Fazio said. Employers can save about $250 a month in payroll taxes on each H-2A worker, which means costs of the recruitment and transportation are covered over a five- month contract. WAFLA keeps a large database of worker information so that it can apply for visas and fill out I-9 employment eligibility verification forms. Employers can let the asso- ciation know which employees it would like to rehire the following year and which it would rather not hire. About 90 percent of H-2A workers coming to Washington have been requested by employers. Fazio said the H-2A program has a good reputation in Mexico. Every effort is made to protect workers from people who might try to take advantage of them. WAFLA checks repeatedly to make sure no one put their hand out for money, either during recruitment or during their trip to Washington State. Supervisors play a key role in WAFLA, which offers supervisor-training classes to encourage crew leaders to treat guest-workers fairly and to overcome attitudes such as, "I came up here the hard way, and I'm going to make sure you experience that." Fazio said one of the biggest drawbacks of the pro- gram is that a farmer who has H-2A workers is required to hire any qualified domestic people who apply for jobs during the first half of the contract, and offer the same pay and benefits, including housing, which might not be available. Proposed immigration reform should provide for a vastly superior guest-worker program in the future, Fazio said. He hopes that growers will be allowed to charge domestic workers a reasonable fee for housing. "We've learned so much because farmers in Washing- ton have stepped up, and we've learned things that are useful for our industry advocates when they're pushing for immigration reform," he said. • Where does the money go? Travel and consulate fees account for more than 70 percent of the cost of bringing a foreign person to work in the United States under the H-2A program. The cost decreases when workers have contracts with more than one employer. SOURCE: Washington Farm Labor Association * Miscellaneous fees include state taxes, advertising, and Department of Labor ERH97-QQMKVEXMSR7IVZMGIW½PMRKJIIW Inbound travel 32% Outbound travel 24% U.S. Consulate, Customs and Border Protection fee 16% Agent 8% WAFLA 5% Contingency 8% Miscellaneous fees 7%* 7% 8% 5% 8% 16% 32% 24% WORKER SEES H-2A as opportunity C arlos Escamilla Carranco, who comes from a small village in Tamaulipas State in Mexico, has worked in the United States under the H-2A program for four years. For the first two years, he picked oranges in Florida, which paid well but was hard work. He heard about better opportunities in Washington State and received a job offer with J & B Orchards in Mesa, Washington, in 2012. Carranco appreciated the higher wages and better working conditions and made friends with domestic workers, who would stop by to offer him and other foreign workers a ride to Othello or Pasco. J & B Orchards is owned by the Douglas family, who last year obtained visas for 50 workers from Tamaulipas to harvest apples between August and October. During that time, Carranco was able to earn more than he could working the entire year in Mexico. He was able to send home almost $5,000 and buy gifts for his wife, children, and family. —Washington Farm Labor Association Carlos Escamilla Carranco (holding the puppy) earns more while working for 10 weeks in Washington State than he can in the entire year in Mexico. PHOTO COURTESY OF WASHINGTON FARM LABOR ASSOCIATION