Congressional Hearing: Immigrant Farm Workers pt.1 (FULL Hearing with Colbert)

[0:02] We go now to a House hearing on immigrant farm workers from earlier today. [0:06] Comedian Stephen Colbert brought attention to the hearing as one of the witnesses. [0:10] He had spent a day working at a vegetable farm in New York in August [0:14] as part of a United Farm Workers campaign. [0:17] The campaign called on unemployed Americans to take jobs in the agriculture sector. [0:22] Zoe Lofgren of California chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security. [0:27] This is just over two hours. [0:29] The Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law will come to order. [0:38] We realize that there is great interest in the plight of migrant farm workers in America, [0:43] but we will ask that the press actually pull back from the table [0:48] so that we can observe all four of our witnesses. [0:54] And if the press cannot do so, they'll be asked to leave the room. [1:01] I would like to welcome our witnesses, members of the Immigration Subcommittee [1:10] and others who have joined us today for the Subcommittee's hearing on protecting America's harvest. [1:16] The American agricultural sector has long suffered from a lack of available U.S. workers [1:21] to grow and pick America's fruits and vegetables. [1:25] Even in today's tough economic climate, whether we like it or not, [1:29] an insufficient and continually decreasing number of U.S. workers are willing to fill manual agricultural jobs. [1:37] America's farms are dependent on a reliable workforce to produce our domestic food supply, [1:43] and today's farms are struggling to stay in business as a result of current labor challenges. [1:48] Today's hearing will explore the labor needs of our nation's agricultural sector, [1:53] its attempt to recruit U.S. workers for agricultural labor, [1:57] the problems with our current visa program for agricultural workers, and potential solutions. [2:03] One explanation for why American workers may now be unwilling to engage in manual farm worker [2:09] when they were willing to do so decades ago may lie in our improving educational system. [2:15] In the 1940s and 50s, a full half of the native-born workforce did not have a high school diploma. [2:21] Last year, that number was 5.7 percent. [2:24] In any event, the difficulty in recruiting native-born workers to work on farms [2:29] has been highlighted by the United Farm Workers' Take Our Jobs, Please campaign. [2:35] The campaign invites unemployed Americans to use the UFW's assistance to obtain employment as farm workers. [2:44] Yet, according to the UFW, even in a period of high unemployment, [2:48] across all educational and socioeconomic sectors of our society, [2:53] only seven U.S. workers have agreed to actually work in the fields as of today. [2:58] I have been a long-time advocate for farm workers and growers. [3:03] When I was on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in the 1980s, [3:07] I worked closely with the United Farm Workers and the Farm Bureau. [3:10] I've spent time on many farms. [3:12] Just recently, at the invitation of the UFW, I spent the day picking strawberries at a farm near my district. [3:19] The UFW also invited me to spend the day picking vegetables at a farm in New York with Stephen Colbert. [3:26] I want to thank UFW's President Arturo Rodriguez for bringing us together on this important issue. [3:32] And I would like to admonish the audience, before I continue my statement, [3:38] that we need to maintain order and decorum throughout these proceedings. [3:43] And to that end, I would like to remind all of the visitors in the audience [3:48] that they should refrain from any manifestation of approval or disapproval of these proceedings [3:53] or any other disruptive actions. [3:56] If necessary, the Capitol Police are here to remove anyone who disrupts the hearing, [4:01] but we certainly hope that won't be necessary. [4:03] Part of what I've learned over the years is that without a sufficient U.S. labor force, [4:09] U.S. farmers have increasingly relied on undocumented workers. [4:13] According to the Department of Labor, over 50 percent of all seasonal agricultural workers are undocumented. [4:20] Experts believe that due to underreporting, that number may actually be closer to 75 percent. [4:26] Critics argue that the shortage of U.S. agricultural workers could be solved, [4:32] by simply increasing wages and working conditions. As a long-time and ardent supporter of farmworkers, [4:38] I would like nothing better. [4:39] But we must also face the reality that the Nation's growers compete with farmers [4:44] from around the world in this increasingly globalized world. Increasing wages and benefits [4:50] in an amount necessary to attract millions of educated U.S. workers to the field would mean increased production costs [4:58] that could render U.S. food products uncompetitive with imported products. [5:04] American farms would then close, in turn resulting in the mass offshoring of tens of millions of agriculture and related jobs. [5:12] Indeed, this is already happening. Between 2007 and 2008, 1.56 million acres of U.S. farmland were shut down. [5:21] Many of these farms simply moved to Mexico, where agricultural labor is more available. [5:27] And when farms close, our country suffers. Not only do we lose the jobs filled by those who work in the fields, [5:32] but we lose the millions of so-called upstream and downstream jobs connected to those jobs, [5:38] whether it's processing, packaging, transportation, seed production, manufacturing, accounting, advertising. [5:45] These jobs are overwhelmingly filled by U.S. workers. Yet these jobs disappear, too, when farms are closed. [5:52] Economists believe that for every farm job lost, the U.S. loses another 3.1 complementary jobs. [5:59] Aside from the loss of millions of jobs, the closure of American farms endangers the Nation's economy and national security. [6:07] The truth is that our national security depends on our ability to produce a stable domestic food supply. [6:13] Like oil, the more we rely on other countries for our food supply, the more we fall victim to an increased trade debt, [6:20] scarcity in times of drought, fluctuating external market prices, and political pressure. [6:26] We would also increase the possibility of foodborne illnesses and terrorist attacks through our Nation's food supply. [6:32] The plain truth is that food security is national security. [6:36] America cannot afford to stop producing its own food supply, and we need the labor force to do so. [6:42] Today, we will hear from our panel of witnesses to better understand this complex and very important issue for Americans, [6:49] American jobs, our economy, and our national security. [6:53] People in the media spotlight have a special ability to focus public opinion on an issue. [6:59] Whether it's Bono talking about third world poverty or Angelina Jolie advocating for protecting children against human trafficking, [7:08] the power of media figures to use their celebrity to focus attention on essential public issues is well known and well regarded. [7:17] I am happy that Stephen Colbert of the Colbert Report has joined that group of celebrities who will use their media position to benefit others. [7:26] As you can see from Mr. Colbert's written testimony, he has taken the time to walk in the shoes of migrant farm workers, [7:33] and he urges reform of our immigration laws. [7:36] I am happy that the United Farm Workers helped introduce me to Mr. Colbert, who I had not met before, [7:42] so we could spend a day on a farm together. [7:44] His actions are a good example of how, using both levity and fame, [7:50] a media figure can bring attention to a critically important issue for the good of the Nation. [7:55] I appreciate all of our witnesses' efforts to be with us today and their leadership in this area, [8:01] and I hope that together we can find solutions to these pressing problems. [8:05] I would now recognize our distinguished ranking member, Steve King, for his opening statement. [8:10] Thank you, Madam Chair. I appreciate being recognized, [8:13] and the thought that comes to mind as I listen to your opening statement is [8:16] I'm wondering how the Eskimos got along all those centuries without fresh fruit and vegetables, [8:20] if it's a national security issue. [8:22] However, before we start the testimony from the panel, [8:27] I'd like to focus my remarks on protecting American workers. [8:31] Illegal immigration, the lack of enforcement of our immigration laws, [8:35] and today's jobs depression have formed a perfect storm for hurting Americans. [8:40] The most important duty of the subcommittee is that we ensure our nation's immigration policy [8:45] lifts up Americans, not holds them down. [8:48] I find it hard to understand why some people carelessly claim that Americans won't do hard work. [8:52] I find this claim insulting, as I am sure most hardworking Americans do. [8:58] It's most insulting to those brave American soldiers who voluntarily risk their lives [9:02] to defend our freedom and way of life every day, [9:05] the men and women that take on terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan, [9:08] trek for miles across the desert with 70 or more pounds of gear [9:12] and 100 plus degree temperatures for about $8.09 an hour. [9:17] And that includes the Marines. [9:19] Maybe we should be spending less time watching Comedy Central [9:22] and more time considering all the real jobs that are out there, [9:24] ones that require real hard labor and don't involve sitting behind a desk. [9:28] If we did, we'd realize that every day, American workers perform the dirtiest, most difficult, [9:32] most dangerous jobs that can be thrown at them. [9:35] From crab fishermen that venture out into some of the roughest and most dangerous waters in the world, [9:40] to the Joe the Plumbers of the world who many days would prefer the aroma of fresh dirt [9:48] to that of the sewage from American elitists who disparage them even as they flush. [9:53] These are real Americans doing real jobs, tasks that simply must get done. [9:58] When American workers are treated with respect and paid for the labor, [10:01] they will do any job and they will outwork anyone on earth. [10:06] America's spirit is hard working and so are the people that comprise this great nation. [10:10] Let's move on to agriculture. [10:12] I represent a rural district made up mostly of farmers and farm communities, [10:17] and the people of Iowa know what it takes to manage and effectively run a farm. [10:21] One issue with attracting more American workers to seasonal agricultural labor [10:24] is that most migrant workers are consigned to perpetual poverty. [10:28] I wish that the United Farm Workers Union today understood, [10:31] as Cesar Chavez clearly did, [10:33] the devastating impact that illegal immigration has on American farm workers. [10:37] Of course it is argued by Tom Vilsack, President Obama's Secretary of Agriculture, [10:43] that food prices would be three, four, or five times more if it were not for illegal immigrant workers. [10:50] This is blatantly false and can't be supported by any data, [10:53] and he doesn't even bother to defend himself. [10:55] Data from the Secretary's own Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Labor Statistics [10:59] to show that labor costs only represent six percent of the price consumers pay for fresh fruits and vegetables. [11:05] You could double the pay of workers and see only a six percent increase in consumer prices. [11:10] Highly respected agricultural economist Philip Martin of the University of California [11:14] notes that if there was a forty percent increase in farm wages, [11:17] the average household would spend only eight dollars more a year on fruits and vegetables, [11:22] less than the price of a movie ticket. [11:24] I'm sure that most Americans would gladly pay eight dollars more a year in order to ensure a legal workforce. [11:30] Cheap labor is just not worth illegal immigration's cost to Americans as workers or as taxpayers. [11:36] The reality is, employers hire desperate aliens who will work for much less than Americans, [11:42] driving wages down and making it impossible for American workers to compete. [11:46] As Ranking Member Smith has pointed out many times in the past, [11:50] there are eight million illegal immigrants in the workforce competing against the 15.4 million illegal, [11:57] or 15.4 million Americans who are officially counted as unemployed, [12:02] which includes the 80 million who are simply not in the workforce because they've dropped out [12:07] and are no longer looking for jobs, and they are of working age. [12:11] Americans have given up looking for those jobs because wages have been depressed [12:15] and job opportunities eliminated by low-skilled and very mobile immigration. [12:20] The percent of teenagers who work has never been lower. [12:23] Professor Carol Swain will testify today about the toll mass immigration has taken on minority communities. [12:29] What's important to point out is that all of this started happening well before the recession. [12:35] Professor George Borjas, now at Harvard University, did groundbreaking research on the impact of immigration in the 1980s and 90s on low-skilled American workers. [12:44] Professors Andrew Sum and Paul Harrington and other researchers at the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University [12:51] found in 2005 that, and I quote, given large job losses among the nation's teens, 20 to 24-year-olds with no four-year degree, [13:00] black males and poorly educated native-born men, it is clear that native-born workers have been displaced in recent years because of immigration." [13:09] It's amazing to me that amnesty advocates simply ignore the 80 million labor pool. [13:16] We can either feed, clothe, and house them, or put them to work to feed and clothe the world. [13:21] The current economic crisis only magnifies the impact on American workers and families, [13:25] but unless our immigration policies are changed, American workers and families will continue to be undermined even after the economy turns the corner. [13:32] The Heritage Foundation found that the average household headed by an immigrant household without a high school degree [13:41] receives over $19,000 in total government benefits more than they pay in taxes from federal, state, and local. [13:48] Cheap labor? [13:49] You know, I think about the day that I had to swim out into Ursula Lagoon and dive into nine feet of fluid to retrieve a pump. [13:59] And when I think about the day that it was 20 below and I'm in the water fixing a water line and the warmest place there was in the water. [14:06] The work that I've done in my life in the construction business and the work that we've put our workers through and the pride with which they take, [14:13] it means that it's an insult to me to hear that Americans won't do this work. [14:17] I can't think of a job that I have not been willing to do and I can't think of an employee that I've had over the 28 years in the construction business [14:24] that refused to do the work that was necessary. [14:26] Americans will do that work, but they want to be paid a respectable wage for it. [14:30] I look forward to the testimony, Madam Chair, and I yield back the balance of my time. [14:34] Billman yields back, and with the agreement of the minority, we are recognizing the author of the Ag Jobs Bill, Mr. Berman, for his statement. [14:47] And then Mr. Smith and Mr. Connors will give their opening statements. [14:51] Mr. Berman. [14:53] Well, thank you very much, Madam Chair, and thank you very much for holding a hearing which, perhaps like few others, [15:01] will highlight the conditions of migrant farm workers in this country.