Several in pear, hemp industry don't foresee labor shortage in light of pandemic

MEDFORD, Ore.– Harvest season is arriving for two major industries in the Rogue Valley.

With thousands of pounds of fruit and hemp that need to be picked in the coming weeks, many hands are required. However, with the pandemic, there are concerns about a labor shortage.

Pear harvest is underway and hemp is just around the corner. Two of the Rogue Valley’s major industries are approaching another season with a caveat – working around a pandemic.

“You know all the masking, all the social distancing, there is the limits on now transporting people in vans from housing to the orchards,” said Robert Boggess, general counsel and real estate manager for Naumes, Inc.

While the pandemic is creating new steps in worker safety, companies like Naumes say finding labor in the past before the pandemic was already difficult.

However, after utilizing the temporary agricultural employment program, otherwise known as H2-A, they’re making it work.

“The key piece is that they’re non-immigrant which is different than a lot of other immigration where people are looking to immigrate to the United States. These folks come and work for us for certain periods of time,” said Boggess.

On average, the company employs 175 to 225 foreign nationals for the fall harvest. Those workers are already arriving. The company also has a policy to hire any domestic labor that applies.

“We have found that some people end up staying with us and working throughout the season with us and some people don’t. Some people decide they only want to pick pears for a day,” said Boggess.

For the hemp industry, it’s left to be seen.

The harvest season usually doesn’t start until the end of September going into October.

According to some farmers, last year was terrible for finding labor. With the hemp boom, many farms struggled to find enough hands.

“There was a shortage. It was difficult to find people. But we still managed, I think most farms did still manage to get people, and this year I don’t foresee that same issue,” said Kelley Thomas, owner of Fern Valley Farms.

The company says it expects an easier time finding labor this season.

Last year, many farms went under as the boom led to an over-saturation in the market. Thomas says those that are left will be doing their best to make things work.

What may end up aiding worker shortages, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics as of July the unemployment rate is at 10 percent.

That’s more than triple what it was before the pandemic.