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Actually, a lot of these workers do pay taxes, social security, and workman's comp through deductions on their payroll. Unlike legal workers, they never see tax returns though because, as you say, they don't file.

posted 4 years, 7 months ago
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I'm so glad to hear this topic being presented. I was the moderator at a similar discussion last night that Slow Food Portland held in response to this summer's Edible Portland Article on migrant labor and Carlo Petrini's call for "good, clean, FAIR" food. While I was happy to hear the woman speak so well of the people who she worked with when she tried picking blueberries for a summer, I was disappointed that the resultant question was how can these people get out of the fields. Yes, they need a better situation, but as soon as they leave the fields someone else needs to fill their place. The jobs don't go away. We need to find ways to honor these difficult and skilled jobs, ways to make the work conditions better, the pay better, and to allow the pickers and field workers access to benefits like health care and retirement accounts. Mechanization is not the answer, it will never totally replace hand labor, or give the quality of food that is needed. I've worked on small farms with migrant workers and really admire the work that they do. Farms and farmers are dependent on these people and the small farms I've worked on really respect them and treat them as well as possible, but the farmers aren't making much either and it's impossible for anyone on the farm to make a decent wage, let alone benefits.

posted 4 years, 7 months ago
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