Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It might be funny if it wasn’t so sad.
Thanks to the resulting labor shortage, Georgia farmers have been forced to leave millions of dollars’ worth of blueberries, onions, melons and other crops unharvested and rotting in the fields. It has also put state officials into something of a panic at the damage they’ve done to Georgia’s largest industry.
Barely a month ago, you might recall, Gov. Nathan Deal welcomed the TV cameras into his office as he proudly signed HB 87 into law. Two weeks later, with farmers howling, a scrambling Deal ordered a hasty investigation into the impact of the law he had just signed, as if all this had come as quite a surprise to him.
***********************************
I've mentioned it before, and I'll mention it once more, but America needs an underclass. One is made from petty criminals. The other is illegal immigrants. Without them, we cease to function....or just function poorly.
***********************************
According to the survey, more than 6,300 of the unclaimed jobs pay an hourly wage of just $7.25 to $8.99, or an average of roughly $8 an hour. Over a 40-hour work week in the South Georgia sun, that’s $320 a week, before taxes, although most workers probably put in considerably longer hours. Another 3,200 jobs pay $9 to $11 an hour
Blame your government. Wages should have never dropped to "immigrant" level to begin with. Had your government did it's job and sealed the borders, then we wouldn't be having this conversation would we?
Blame your government. Wages should have never dropped to "immigrant" level to begin with. Had your government did it's job and sealed the borders, then we wouldn't be having this conversation would we?
Nah, but you'd probably also be paying $4 for one Vidalia onion.
Under traditional free market principles, if you can't attract workers at the wage you offer, you can either stop trying to attract workers, or you can increase the wage you offer.
How much do the major agribusiness CEOs and executives make in salary and stock per year?
Perhaps if they value their profit, they'd do well to offer more in terms of wages to those who make their profits possible in the first place.
the sad part is that those farms get government subsidies in the first place, and then turn around and hire cheap illegal labor.
it's a win-win for big agribusiness and a lose-lose for the citizens.
the hypocrisy of the article is that they hired parolees to man the farms and most of them didn't want to do hard labor-what a surprise. there is a reason that most of them are parolees and a lot of that has to do with not making an honest living. advertise those jobs and pay decent wages and see how many people apply for the jobs. i would like to see an article on that.
I didn't bother to read the article, just the responses. Up here in the North, when I was young (70's/80's), teens as young as 13 detassled corn. Can't they just hire the teenagers to do it?
Let the free market adjust and offer higher pay rates. Big Ag has had it too good for too long using cheap illegal labor. I'm sure they can dig into their CEO and stocks and fraudulent farm subsidies to pay workers better wages.
One small flaw in the above quote. There is no real demand for these particular onions. $4 a piece for a Vadalia onion or $0.50 a piece for an onion from, say Mississippi .... not hard to figure out the 'free market' in that scenario.
Quote:
After all, isn't that what liberals are always crying about? That CEOs are hoarding the wealth too much and not sharing it? Why are you complaining now?
Unlike these particular onions, we have a relatively stable demand for oil. Drilling costs, refinery costs, delivery costs, etc. are also relatively stable. Yet the prices at the pump are anything but stable. Where is the 'free market' influence in that industry? This is the industry that, despite these trying economic times, is celebrating record profits and unprecedented C.E.O. salaries and bonuses. Banking and Insurance, nearly the same scenario. Free market? I think not. It is not just demand that are driving these industries. It is a demand for record profit.
I won't 'cry' for other 'liberals', but I despise the "damn the torpedoes", "get mine while I can" attitudes when we, as a country, are on the verge of an economic meltdown. Too much profit is never enough.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
