Farm workers continue to head to jobs amid fear and anxiety
At the Farm Bureau of Ventura County in California, office staff field daily calls from concerned farmers who ask whether their workers are safe to continue their daily jobs.
The tense situation in California is similar to other agricultural states, nearly all of which rely heavily on farmworkers whose immigration status is sometimes unclear.California is a major supplier of the national and global food supply, producing $59.4 billion in cash receipts for their 2023 output, marking a 1.4% increase from the previous year.
Their farmers' fears in California and elsewherestem from President Donald Trumps recent mass deportation orders, a heavy concern for the states vast farming community.
I get calls everyday, said Maureen McGuire, business development manager at the Ventura County Farm Bureau. Farm owners ask whether they will be okay because theyre based inCalifornia, but McGuire has had to explain that the federal governments power supersedesthe states.
Everybodys right to be concerned, she said.
There have been no reported sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at Ventura County Farms, according to McGuire. But in early January, prior to Trump taking office, CAL News reported that Customs and Border Protection, also known as Border Patrol, were present in Bakersfield, a farming town in Kern County.
United Farm Workers stated on their website they were told Border Patrol agents rounded up and arrested people in locations that field workers and day laborers frequented when seeking work.
But since then, there has been no reported activity in their region, or feedback from the regions farms, said Rachel Nettleton, executive director of Kern County Farm Bureau.
In a post on their Instagram page, they posted a statement in support of farmworkers, acknowledging their concerns, while also stating that criminals didnt belong in their community.
Those two groups farmworkers and criminals are not synonymous, the statement reads. We hope for a timely and compassionate resolution that allows our farmers and the farmworker community to continue their vital contributions to our local agricultural production while ensuring the safety of our community as a whole.
With the rumor mill running rampant on social media about ICE and Border Patrol presence, organizations such as Witness, UndocuFund and Rapid Response hotlines have sprung to keep anxiety at bay.
Labor shortage and immigration reform
Multiple news outlets picked up on the AgAlerts story that the Kern County raids brought the citrus harvest to a halt as farmworkers stayed home out of fear.
But according to Antonio De Loera-Brust, communications director at UFW, this has not resulted in a shortage of workers, and farmworkers are continuing to head to work despite fear and anxiety.
To be blunt, farm workers cant afford not to work, as they are already living paycheck to paycheck, with many farm workers' annual income falling below the federal poverty line, he said. Farm workers cannot be sure if they will encounter ICE or Border Patrol on their way to work, but they can be sure that rent is due and they need to put food on the table for their kids.
He emphasized that these farmworkers should be granted a pathway to citizenship.
This is very least that the workers who feed America deserve, he said.
The California Farm Bureau echoed the statement, noting the need for immigration policy reform and acknowledging the chronic and longstanding labor shortage within the agricultural workforce that farmers and ranchers have struggled with for years.
"Californias farmers and ranchers are ready to work with the administration and Congress to advance real, bipartisan workforce reforms this year," said Bryan Little, senior director of policy advocacy at the California Farm Bureau. "This isnt just about filling jobsits about ensuring security and stability for the agricultural workforce and the farmers who depend on them."
McGuire said its difficult to measure whether theres been any impact on the citrus harvest since the season has just started and the weather has been cold in Ventura County, where they produce lemons.
In Kern County, where there are tangerines and mandarins, Netteton said her countys farm bureau has not heard of any decline in citrus production.
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Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2025-02-05 16:47:42
