Narrative: e. 1.

The Employment Security Department (ESD) is responsible under the Wagner-Peyser grant to prepare an annual Agricultural Outreach Plan (AOP) guided by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). This plan aligns with questions posed by DOL for ESD and extends to coordination through WorkSource – Washington’s one-stop workforce development system – in the provision of employment and training services to Migrant Seasonal Farmworkers (MSFWs). The plan will cover the period from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2028, and will remain in effect until updated. RCW 50.75.040(4) also directs the committee to report to the Governor and Legislature on:

• Recommended approaches to improve ESD's recruitment process as part of the H-2A application, including recommended changes to state law if appropriate.
• Analysis of cost incurred to administer the H-2A program and funds for other farmworker programs, including federal funds provided for the H-2A program.

MSFWs are an essential part of our agricultural industry, which serves as one of the top sectors in Washington State. While their contributions to our economy are well recognized, many of these individuals face a myriad of barriers, including access to stable housing, immigration status, educational attainment/access, and access to affordable health care. Over the past several years, there have been a couple of reports that speak to farmworkers needs in Washington State, including:

• In January of 2022, the Washington State Department of Commerce published a report titled, Washington Farmworker Housing Needs Assessment. The report cites that while home values increased 52% and rent increased 57% between 2012 and 2018, farmworkers wages only increased 19% in the same period of time. The report includes a housing gap analysis using 2019 data that shows 30,359 beds available for seasonal farmworkers and 2,657 housing units set aside for year-round farmworker households.  Using a figure of 102,304 farmworkers in Washington at the time, this shows a potential 69,288 farmworkers competing for local housing markets for rental or ownership housing options. The 2015 report, “Farm Work Group Report,” which summarized agricultural labor and industry meetings that communicated the needs of agricultural employers and farmworkers related to labor supply, wage complaints and retaliation, sexual harassment, pesticide drift and farmworker housing. In the report, there was consensus on numerous administrative solutions including: 1) the need to find methods to better measure and understand labor shortages; 2) the need to study methods for increasing domestic participation in the agricultural industry; and 3) recommendations that the development of permanent and seasonal farmworker housing be supported through loan programs and other incentives.

The reports referenced are informative and speak to the needs of farmworkers that likely parallel the needs of farmworkers nationwide. As it relates to national studies that inform our state perspective, The Aspen Institute recently published a report titled, “Exchange: The Future of Work & Agriculture.” The report analyzed current economic trends in agriculture and offered policy recommendations aimed at helping our workforce adjust to the future of agriculture. Key recommendations made in this report include expanding broadband access on U.S. agricultural land to allow for the adoption of precision technologies that make growers more competitive in a global economy and greater availability of training for farm managers and workers to learn how to use new technological tools and navigate increasingly complex regulatory requirements. In Washington State, workforce system partners in agricultural areas are starting to recognize this need and responding by partnering with agricultural employers to develop incumbent worker training and apprenticeship opportunities aimed at upskilling existing adults and youth in mechanized fields in agriculture. One community college in our state has also invested in the development of a certification program aimed at educating orchard supervisors on how to navigate state and federal law requirements while learning best practices.

Agricultural and Seasonal Workforce Services (ASWS) Report