Farmers in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley are reporting a shortage of farm labor, and some attribute that to the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement actions.
KVEO in Brownsville reported that the shortage of farmworkers began developing about three weeks ago. Farmer Nick Billman of Donna, Texas, told the television station that immigration raids have created a situation where farm workers don’t want to get caught up in enforcement sweeps.
“I would say within the last three weeks it started to slow, but this last week has been huge,” he said. “That is when it has been zero people wanting to come out and be exposed to be able to be picked up, whether they are legal or illegal.”
The Rio Grande Valley covers the southernmost tip of the state along the Rio Grande border with Mexico and extends to the east along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The region produces a large portion of the state’s citrus and vegetable crops.
The station reported that some farmers there seem optimistic after President Donald Trump commented that he had plans to help farmers. Trump reportedly ordered a halt to immigration enforcement at farms and several other types of businesses. But that won’t solve their immediate problem.
Billman told the station he is concerned about whether he could hit full production this year.
“It could be to the point where we lose our planting and having the ground ready, and even then, why plan if we cannot even harvest?” he said.
Migrants help with the heaviest work at Billman’s farm. But he’s also worried about his standing with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement if agents pay a visit.
“We don’t ask people for papers as it is not our job,” Billman said. “If someone is willing to work, we’re gonna give them a 1099 form, they signed up on it, they [get] paid, and whether they pay their taxes, that is their responsibility.”
Billman said he’s not sure what might happen if ICE agents don’t like how he operates. “We don’t know [who’s] legal or not because we don’t ask that.”
The American Farm Federation posted a response to Trump’s comments about assisting the farmworker situation. “We call on Congress to follow the President’s lead to develop a permanent solution that fixes outdated and broken farmworker programs.”
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