The Federal government’s General Accounting Office will soon issue a report that concludes that there is no need for legislation to create an agricultural guest worker program because there is “no national agricultural labor shortage at this time” and “a sudden widespread farm labor shortage requiring the importation of foreign workers is unlikely to occur in the near future.” The report acknowledges localized shortages, however.
The GAO’s report was leaked to the New York Times on December 27th by an opponent of guestworker legislation allied with farm workers unions.
Proponents of guest worker legislation argue that there are already widespread shortages and that the current INS border crackdown will only make matters worse. Further, guest worker advocates argue that the current H-2A visa program is so complex and burdensome, that most employers are unable to use it. The H-2A program requires farmers to undertake a labor certification to document no US workers are available in the area. The proposed guest worker legislation, sponsored by Senator Gordon Smith (R-Washington) would eliminate this onerous requirement.
Opponents of the guest worker legislation are mainly organized labor groups and immigration restrictionists. They argue that adding more foreign workers will drive down wages and hurt unionization efforts.
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