Agriculture Lobbies for More Workers, Ignores Mechanization

By Joe Guzzardi
October 21, 2013

Cathy McMorris Rodgers is a U.S. Representative from Spokane, an Eastern Washington city surrounded by agriculturally dependent areas. In her recent statement to the press, McMorris Rodgers, a Republican, said that she wants immigration reform this year.

McMorris Rodgers, the fourth ranking House Republican, insists that there’s still time left on the congressional calendar to pass legislation which she considers “a priority.”

The chairwoman of the House Republican Conference counts Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte and Speaker John Boehner among her allies. Goodlatte, whose Virginia district also has extensive agricultural interests, said this summer that the House needs to take up immigration bills, “the sooner the better.”

In August, the agriculture industry double-teamed with Silicon Valley to travel to Capitol Hill to lobby jointly for comprehensive immigration reform. Growers claimed, as they always do, that without more guest workers, crops will rot and the economies in states like Washington and California would lose millions.

As with many of the pro-immigration reform arguments, the reality is starkly different. Dr. Philip Martin, University of California, Davis professor of agriculture and resource economics noted that a true labor shortage would be evident in one of three ways: 1) lack of productivity, 2) wage increases (law of supply and demand) and 3) rising costs to consumers.

Martin found that the opposite conditions exist. During the last several years, farmers have enjoyed record yields and income. Even labor intensive crops like strawberries and cherries have flourished. The Department of Agriculture Statistics show that both labor costs, whether related to hired or part-time seasonal workers, as well as consumer prices have been steady.

In a curious coincidence, at the exact time business lobbies were in D.C. pressing immigration reform, 10,000 miles away in Brisbane, Australia, farmers attended an agribot demonstration at Queensland University of Technology.

The agricultural robot market is coming of age and could, if growers use it, replace illegal immigrant field workers. Agricultural engineer Harold Brewer projects that tens of thousands of small, low cost ($5,000) agribots could plant, cultivate and harvest crops throughout the U.S. through multiple language remote commands. Brewer says if robots could be successfully implemented in Iraq, they can be effective on a farm.

Getting serious about mechanization, which Congress should insist on, would require farmers to take the long look at something they’re not motivated to do. The endless supply of foreign-born labor discourages farmers from pursuing mechanized options. Some of the workers enter on legal visas, others come illegally. Either way, since few go home, growers know they can count on immigrants to provide continuous low wage labor.

History has proven that in agriculture, a pool of cheap workers gives owners strong incentive to expand planting man-hour intensive crops rather than investing in labor-saving equipment.

From the workers’ perspective, they grow accustomed to their increased US income versus what they earned at home, and have little incentive to return. As illegal aliens put down roots, they send the message to young people in their native country that coming north is normal. Thus, the pattern of illegal immigration repeats itself.

McMorris Rodgers’ immigration advocacy doesn’t demonstrate an understanding of agriculture economics or empathy for 20 million unemployed or underemployed Americans. Congress’ first obligation is to its citizens, not the special interests who use their financial clout to influence legislation.

Joe Guzzardi is a Californians for Population Stabilization Senior Writing Fellow whose columns have been syndicated since 1987. Contact him at [email protected]