How this garlic farm went from a labor shortage to over 150 people on its applicant waitlist

[rangerrebew]

How this garlic farm went from a labor shortage to over 150 people on its applicant waitlist


By NATALIE KITROEFF
FEB 09, 2017 | 6:00 AM


Ken Christopher, vice president at Christopher Ranch, had been failing to draw new workers since 2014. (Feb. 9, 2017)

The biggest fresh garlic producer in the nation is giving its employees a hefty raise, reflecting the desperation of farmers to attract a dwindling number of farmworkers.

Christopher Ranch, which grows garlic on 5,000 acres in Gilroy, Calif., announced recently that it would hike pay for farmworkers from $11 an hour to $13 hour this year, or 18%, and then to $15 in 2018. That's four years earlier than what's required by California's schedule for minimum wage increases.
 

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...207-story.html

[Free Vulcan]

Active link: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-garlic-labor-shortage-20170207-story.html

@rangerrebew looks like your browser truncates links.

[roamer_1]

Who the heck would do farm work by the hour?

[Sanguine]

Who the heck would do farm work by the hour?

People in California?

[Wingnut]

Who the heck would do farm work by the hour?

I thought they got paid by the number of peck's they picked.

[roamer_1]

I thought they got paid by the number of peck's they picked.

It has always been piecework for me... And I prefer that. If you work hard, it was good money.

[Free Vulcan]

It has always been piecework for me... And I prefer that. If you work hard, it was good money.

I would figure that it would be like that in Cali - contract piecework, since it's a limited time deal.

It's more hourly here in Iowa, as most things like hog confinements are ongoing, although like in detassling corn they used to pay the contractor a set amount and he would pay the worker's hourly wage out of that.

[Wingnut]

I would figure that it would be like that in Cali - contract piecework, since it's a limited time deal.

It's more hourly here in Iowa, as most things like hog confinements are ongoing, although like in detassling corn they used to pay the contractor a set amount and he would pay the worker's hourly wage out of that.

As a yute I was paid by the hour to detassel corn and to cut rouge corn out of the soy been fields.     When I worked on a dair farm I was paid by the day.  That sucked cuz those were 10-11 hour days!.

[roamer_1]

I would figure that it would be like that in Cali - contract piecework, since it's a limited time deal.

It's more hourly here in Iowa, as most things like hog confinements are ongoing, although like in detassling corn they used to pay the contractor a set amount and he would pay the worker's hourly wage out of that.

Yeah... Local cowpunching and stables are salaried... and poor pay, though it usually comes with food and lodging... Roundup is treated differently, and is pretty good bank, at least it is east of the mountains. The big ranches over there were always short on help, so us mountain folk would drift on over after our own were done... Orchards are piecework, and good money if you have the knack for it, and work hard. Hay was good money too... piecework again...

[thackney]

...Hay was good money too... piecework again...

I stacked hay bales onto the wagon for $2 a day.  A long day but included good hot lunch at his table.

[roamer_1]

I stacked hay bales onto the wagon for $2 a day.  A long day but included good hot lunch at his table.

10 cents a bale out of the field and onto the truck, which included off the truck, if it was handy... Like a hay shed... Another 10 cents from a stack up the conveyor into the loft. 6 of us generally... two stack monkeys, and the rest of us pitchin from the ground... The missus and daughters would bring out a lunch, and the end of the day, that ice-cold beer... Beer don't ever taste better than after a long day of haying.

[Wingnut]

I stacked hay bales onto the wagon for $2 a day.  A long day but included good hot lunch at his table.

After loading it on the wagons we had to climb up into the hay lofts and stack them to the rafters.  Hotter than blue blazes up there and a guy could get hurt if a couple of bales landed on your noggin.

Man that sure built muscles.