11/22/06 Ag labor conference draws a crowd

Washington Ag November 22, 2006 A labor conference sponsored by the Washington Farm Bureau leading into its annual convention earlier this month drew about 180 people, a larger crowd than expected. Dan Fazio, director of employer services with the Farm Bureau says the theme of the event was "Working towards a stable workforce." Fazio." And that's really the problem we have. We don't really feel there is a stable workforce." Fazio says the keynote speaker at the conference was Karen Lee, the state Employment Security commissioner." Fazio: "She talked quite a bit about the agricultural workforce problems. She wouldn't go so far as to say there was a labor shortage, but she did say there was a shortage in certain crops like apples and cherries. And of course the 2000 pound elephant in the corner of the room is how many of the people working for us are accurately documented and how many of them have fraudulent documents?" In addition to labor supply a proposed Department of Homeland Security regulation and Social Security Administration mis-match letters were major topics at the conference. The mis-match letters tell employers workers names and Social Security numbers on W-2 forms don't match government records. Homeland Security says that could mean an employer has "constructive knowledge" that a worker may not be legal and knowingly hiring an illegal is a violation of federal immigration law. Employers were advised to consult with a labor attorney. I'm Bob Hoff.