By Aaron Sparks

In a tight agricultural labor market, many Washington state farmers and fruit growers struggle to find workers during harvest season. In Washington, of course, much of the discussion revolves around apples, the state’s top crop, which, at $2.4 billion, accounts for nearly 25 percent of the state’s agricultural production value. 

Aaron Sparks,

Washington leads the nation in apple production, with a five-year average of 126.6 million 40-pound boxes per year – representing 60 percent of the nation’s volume. The last five years saw the five largest crops, and many experts believe the growth will continue, with production reaching 170 million boxes per year in the near future.

Although the industry is improving production efficiencies through techniques such as high-density plantings and trellis systems, every apple is still hand-picked. This means a reliable supply of seasonal workers is critical at harvest time. 

However, the domestic work force is declining. Agricultural work is hard physical labor, often performed in hot conditions, and its short-term nature also makes it less appealing to many. As the economy improves and other employment options increase, fewer workers are available to harvest crops.

Thus, faced with a significant labor shortage, growers are increasingly turning to the H-2A visa program to ensure they have a stable, reliable and legal workforce in place for the harvest season.

The H-2 guest worker program was established in 1952 and then further subdivided in 1986 into two categories: the uncapped H-2A program for temporary agricultural workers and the capped H-2B program for temporary workers in other industries. 

The H-2A program allows U.S. employers or agents to bring foreign nationals into the U.S. if the work to be performed is agricultural (i.e., the planting, raising, cultivating, harvesting or production of any agricultural or horticultural commodity), full time (a minimum of 35 hours per week) and seasonal in nature (not to exceed 10 months). The employer must demonstrate that there are not enough U.S. workers willing and able to perform the tasks and must offer pay that equals whichever is highest of the adverse effect wage rate ($13.38 an hour in Washington for 2017), the prevailing hour or piece rate, or the federal or state minimum wage.

Employers must provide housing, benefits and round-trip transportation for their guest workers, and the visa application process is complex, as it involves three government agencies, starting with the U.S. Department of Labor and then moving to the Department of Homeland Security and Department of State. 

According to the Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification, Washington was the fourth-largest user of H-2A labor in 2016, after Florida, North Carolina and Georgia. The Department of Labor certified the hiring of 13,641 H-2A workers in Washington in 2016, a rapid increase from just 3,225 in 2011. This year, the state is expected to welcome as many as 15,000 agricultural guest workers. 

Participation is costly, and growers must have the capacity to support the investment. However, even mid-size operations are beginning to make use of H-2A workers by sharing some of the costs (recruiting, transportation and processing fees, for example) and by relying on an association such as Wafla, formerly known as the Washington Farm Labor Association, to arrange sequential contracts for workers to move from one harvest to the next.

Growers have financing options to help them meet the up-front costs, particularly the expense of building worker housing. Several banks work with a number of growers within the Central Washington footprint who are participating in this program. To structure loans to fit their unique needs, taking into account the specifics of each grower’s business situation. 

Agriculture is inherently risky, with so many weather variables out of growers’ control. However, the added risk of losing a crop due to a labor shortage must be minimized as well. Labor-intensive crop producers should evaluate the H-2A program as an additional insurance policy to ensure a successful harvest.

The H-2A program certainly leads to an increase in government paperwork and higher overhead costs. However, it is currently the only guest worker program available to farmers to provide a legal labor force. And despite the mandated higher wage rate and significant upfront investments, Washington state fruit growers clearly see value in the program’s ability to provide a stable and capable work force.

[panel title="About Aaron Sparks:" style="info"]

Aaron Sparks is a team leader and relationship manager at Washington Trust Bank in Kennewick. He provides commercial, agricultural and small business banking services to customers throughout the Tri-Cities and neighboring communities. He graduated from Central Washington University with a business administration degree with a specialization in finance.