EFI report highlights ways to improve labor recruitment

North American agricultural employers may have a leg up on their competitors if they follow principles revealed in a study by the Equitable Food Initiative.

Some of those key practices, according to the study, are: 

• Starting with a responsible recruitment process;
• Developing a clear and accurate flow of information and expectations for guest workers; and 
• Creating a positive and supportive community for all workers.

EFI, a  workforce development and certification organization, published findings of an eight-month survey of more than 650 guest farmworkers who were recruited for work on fresh produce farms in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The research looked at challenges Mexican farmworkers face when they are recruited and deployed to work, according to a news release.

Survey respondents cited concerns around transparency in contracts, physical safety, isolation, high costs related to travel or recruitment, and threats or abuse from employers, according to the release.

Seventy percent of those surveyed reported that threats of being sent home or not being hired again happened frequently, the release said.

The EFI research report, called "10 Ways to Improve Recruitment of Guest Workers," is available online.

The release said one interviewed farmworker stated that, “by creating community, life is easier and more pleasant, which can ease doubts about work problems and increase my productivity.”

“The reality this survey illuminates is that there are still critical but achievable improvements that can be made to have workers arrive ready to work, and return home safely, having met their financial goals,” Kenton Harmer, managing director for EFI,  said in the release. “When 49% of respondents reported that they felt that they were not free to leave the farm, or 25% reported that they had to pay recruitment fees, it shows the importance every grower should place on working with reputable farm labor contractors and adopting a process of responsible recruitment that eliminates illegal and irresponsible recruitment practices and labor conditions.” 

Harmer said in the release that the U.S. has nearly 260,000 temporary agricultural program, or H-2A, guest workers, of which more than 70% work in the fresh produce industry. 

“With increasing recruitment needs in the face of labor shortages, creating a positive recruitment experience should be a top priority for every company — not just for the bottom line, but also for the dignity of every employee,” Harmer said in the release.

The research study was commissioned by EFI and executed by &Wider, a company that specializes in worker engagement, and farm labor contractor CIERTO Global, according to the release.