Dairy industry concerned about workforce

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — Amid President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, the eyes of the agriculture industry are focused on what is next for their workforce.

Idaho Dairymen’s Association CEO Rick Naerebout said foreign-born workers represent 90% of the dairy industry’s workforce. The Department of Labor estimates that 40% of the workers in the agriculture industry aren’t here legally, and Naerebout said it could be as high as 50%.

“We don’t know, you know, what any deportation effort might look like. That could have an impact on the unauthorized workforce that, you know, takes care of the dairy industry,” Naerebout said.

Naerebout added that when workers submit their I9 forms and paperwork, the dairy industry takes the documentation at face value. Many operators do not know if their workers are legal or illegal as the paperwork looks official and in order.

Amid the crackdown, he said the dairy industry is starting to hear concerns from farmers and workers.

“There’s been a couple situations where we’ve heard of workers self-deporting and just out of fear of leaving the country. So there’s been a little bit of that,” Naerebout said.

Naerebout said wages in the dairy industry are rising, not just workers for management, which helps attract workers to bolster their labor force. There are opportunities to automate some of the work done on dairy farms. However, Naerebout said some jobs still require the human element.

“You still have positions like maternity, where you have to have somebody there to be assisting these animals in calving to make sure there’s no calving issues and that there’s somebody there to assist if there is a problem during birth,” Naerebout said.

Workers are also needed to feed the calves and ensure any stray cows get into the facilities to be fed.

Despite the concerns, Naerebout said this could be an opportunity for the industry to get approved for H2A Visas. Seasonal visas are available for the agriculture industry. Still, the dairy industry has been exempt from them as it is year-round.

They have and continued to make efforts to convince Congress to allow it.

“The focus on the border and the lack of security at our Southern Border primarily was the point of concern, and we were told repeatedly, ‘We really can’t talk about reforms. We can’t talk about getting you access to a visa program until we are able to address border security at our Southern Border,‘” Naerebout said.

Now that there is more of an effort to secure the Southern Border, Naerebout said this could help with talks to get those visas approved for their industry.

For now, talks are ongoing, and the dairy industry monitors immigration enforcement.

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