As another Central Coast winegrape harvest comes to a close and the last bins from nearly 36,500 acres are hauled in for pressing, agriculture employers breathe a sigh of relief.

It/s relief that their crop 7 that totaled more than 148,000 tons in 2006 7 has made it out of the field into local wineries for processing.

For most vineyard managers, harvest would not be possible without immigrant agriculture employees.

During October, Edvardo Elijlo and hundreds of other workers walked row by row harvesting the Central Coast/s largest agricultural commodity.

Elijlo and his team of six harvesters work as a unit, eight to nine hours a day, six days a week. Together they harvested between four and five tons of wine grapes daily.

His employer, Pacific Vineyard Management in Edna Valley, and others structure their workforce in groups so that employees regulate their own pace, choosing how fast they work and how much they earn.

BWe work hard and make good money. We enjoy what we do,C Elijlo said as he picked a cluster of sauvignon blanc winegrapes.

With Pacific Vineyard Management since 2001, Elijlo works with Vineyard Manager George Donati, the caretaker for about 2,200 acres of winegrapes in Edna Valley.

Donati, like most agriculture employers throughout California, is paying special attention to the amount of available labor.

As a result of heavy immigration reform pressures nationally, many agriculturists are concerned about a shortage of agriculture employees.

Those concerns became a reality for Northern California pear growers in 2006, when farmers were forced to leave their crops on the trees.

Fortunately, as of mid-October, no reports of major labor shortages on the Central Coast were received, although immigration reform pressures have been felt.

South County labor contractor Carlos Castañeda has felt the immediate effect of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement sweeps that reduce the available labor pool.

BWhen an ICE sweep is executed, many of our workers disappear for several days,C said Castañeda. BMost workers, regardless of their status as citizens, will stay home rather then taking the chance of getting swept up.C

Most labor contractors hold on tightly to their veteran workers. One reason Central Coast employers are able to keep their labor supply is because the winegrape and vegetable industries, for the most part, sustain employees year-round.

Outside of harvest, many hours of labor contribute to producing agricultural commodities, including time planting, irrigating, pruning, fertilizing and weeding.

For that reason, most farmers and ranchers are relieved that a federal court ruling delayed the mailing of Bno-matchC letters, including the Department of Homeland Security guidance letter.

That new guidance letter was developed to more strictly enforce the hiring of undocumented workers and stated the employer must investigate any Social Security discrepancy and either terminate the employee or investigate the employee/s work authorization.

No-match letters have been mailed to employers for many years, but this was the first year that the Department of Homeland Security proposed the guidance letter.

A lawsuit ultimately prevented the Social Security Administration from sending out no-match letters to an estimated 140,000 employers nationwide.

Those letters would have affected approximately 8 million employees. Employers feared this program would force them to terminate a portion of their labor force, leaving them understaffed to harvest commodities.

If ignored, the enforcement program levied heavy fines for each BunmatchedC employee and possible jail time for the employer.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, in a 22-page ruling, issued a preliminary injunction to stop any penalties to employers.

Breyer warned, BThe implementation of the plan would result in irreparable harm to innocent workers and employers.C He added that the new procedure would force additional burden onto the employer, strapping them with additional costs.

The preliminary injunction most likely will last several months until the judge can issue a final ruling. It is not yet known if the Bush administration will appeal the case or withdraw the rule.

BWe expect this issue to be in the courts for a while and maybe go all the way to the Supreme Court,C said Carl Borden of the California Farm Bureau Federation Legal Affairs Department.

BIn the meantime, we will continue to work with family farmers and ranchers to make sure they have the information they need to comply with hiring and workplace rules.C

Under the court order, the Social Security Administration can continue to mail Bno-matchC letters without the Department of Homeland Security guidance letter. Employers should continue to comply with current hiring rules.

BIf a grower does get a DHS guidance letter, he might want to consider taking steps short of all of those that are specified in the DHS no-match rule and just take, for example, the steps suggested in the Social Security no-match letter itself,C Borden said.

In the meantime, the Farm Bureau is working with California Sen. Dianne Feinstein to support the passage of AgJOBS legislation. Senate Bill 340 (Feinstein) and House Bill 371 (Cannon), named the BAgricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits, and Security Act of 2007,C is awaiting a vote.

Passage of that legislation has become more urgent than ever since Congress/s failure to pass comprehensive immigration reform earlier this year.

Local agriculturist Chris Darway of Edna Valley Farming Co. is advocating for support of the AgJOBS legislation.

BFamily farmers and ranchers want to hire people who are legally able to work,C he said. BSan Luis Obispo agriculture depends on a immigrant workforce.

BWe must assure that there are enough people available legally to work on farms and ranches. The best way to do that is for Congress to pass meaningful immigration reform.C

Unlike the current H2A program, AgJOBS would enact meaningful immigration reform that could provide agriculture employers throughout the nation with a workable solution for labor.

California Farm Bureau National Affairs Manager Jack King visited Washington in October to make it clear to legislators that California/s ability to produce food is at stake.

BWe/ve been successful in delivering the message to Congress that agriculture needs AgJOBS,C King said. BBut even as members of Congress understand the seriousness of this situation, there/s still a gulf between recognizing the problem and being willing to do something about it.C

Steven Knudsen is outreach coordinator for the San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau. He can be reached at 543-3654 or steven@slofarmbureau.org.

November 11, 2007