March 2023 - 17

MANAGEMENT
paying more for less just
like at the grocery store.
We just don't have the
bodies to do the jobs
because other industries
can offer more, and the
work isn't as hard, "
Moss says.
FINDING LABOR
" The biggest thing we
hear every day is that
there are problems with
labor, getting labor, reliable
consistent labor - and
there's a solution out
there, " Bartlett says. " If
you're not using H-2A,
you haven't thought about
it, you're going to need it in the future for sure. " The local
workforce is not going to fill the large majority of jobs
that growers have, and the H-2A program has grown
dramatically over the last 10 years to help fill the gaps.
Ten years ago, around 50,000 H-2A visas were issued
compared to 317,000 visas in 2022.
Legacy Labor provides H-2A labor to companies in
need, using the H-2A visa program. There are a lot of
rules and regulations with the program, which keeps some
employers from using it as a source of labor. It takes a
lot of time to manage the paperwork and deal with rule
changes and compliance with the U.S. Department of
Labor (DOL). Legacy Labor recruits workers, files the
paperwork to get the petition and job order approved with
DOL, and makes proper arrangements to get them across
the border to housing and work sites, says Bartlett.
" We handle all the workers' compensation, the
insurance, transportation - they're essentially Legacy
Labor employees. And so, all of the compliance with DOL,
the exposure, is off the grower's plate; it's on our plate, "
he says. So if DOL shows up to audit the H-2A program,
the audit will be conducted on Legacy Labor and not on
the grower.
" The hiring and firing, disciplinary, all the management
of the workforce is on us. [Growers] can really focus on
building their business, and they know that they're going
to get a consistent, reliable workforce to show up every
day to work, " Bartlett says.
Although Legacy Labor hasn't seen a shortage in finding
qualified workers to fill the positions that are requested
by companies, one of the biggest challenges they deal
with is the time it takes to get paperwork done and
housing in order. " We have a lot of growers that call us
Employees of Legacy Labor work at a nursery operation
providing much needed help during the labor shortage.
that need workers two weeks from now or next week or
a month from now, and it takes typically 120 days to do
the paperwork and all the filing and recruiting and getting
housing inspected, " he says.
Recent changes made to H-2A rules in October 2022
have made some cause for concern. " There needs to
be a reform in that for sure. We're involved in different
associations that advocate for change in the form of that
space, and we're doing everything we can as a company to
help with that, " Bartlett says.
The advocacy team at AmericanHort is also focused on
workforce reforms needed and helping to achieve changes
within the program to reduce the costs of implementing
H-2A visas.
OTHER OPTIONS
Although 35% of growers stated that they have used the
H-2A visa program, according to the AmericanHort survey,
half of those growers struggled to fill non-seasonal jobs
that don't currently qualify for the H-2A program. Working
toward changes within a company's operation can save
time and labor.
Half of the growers surveyed by AmericanHort used
new forms of automation in response to the workforce
shortage. Around 40% of operations decided to change
their product offerings to reduce labor costs and more
than 65% reported making operational changes to help
deal with the labor availability problems they were facing.
" Today's workforce is more diverse than we have
ever seen and, thus, provides many opportunities and
challenges for any owner or hiring manager, " Moss says.
Her main goal is to find capable individuals to do the job
and show up every day.
GREENHOUSE PRODUCT NEWS 17
March 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of March 2023
