From Illegals to Essential Workers

They place produce on America's Tables

Every year, thousands of undocumented immigrants head to the agricultural fields of California to harvest fruits and vegetables that eventually make their way to grocery stores across America. Farmers rely on their presence to keep their produce from rotting in the fields and fill positions that most people don't want. It's hard, backbreaking labor that requires a lot of physical endurance. And now, these undocumented immigrants are considered essential workers and are being given a pass by immigration authorities while the coronavirus rages on.
Once the imminent threat of the virus passes, what will become of these workers? Do they return to their previous status and live under constant threat of deportation? Or should we finally acknowledge their contributions to the food supply and give them citizenship as a thank you? One thing is clear: Those who gave their labor to feed people shouldn't have to go back to a life of playing cat and mouse with immigration. It's time for immigration reform to give these workers a thank you for putting their own health at risk to take care of millions.
Temporary Changes to the H-2A Program Gives Some Relief to Documented Workers
The H-2A program allows employers to hire workers from other countries when they are unable to find U.S. citizens to fill the roles. An employer has a prospective employee fill out labor certification paperwork before they arrive in the U.S., and employ them once they have arrived.

As of April 20, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security and USCIS instituted a temporary rule amending some H-2A requirements. The changes are designed to prevent disruptions in the nation's food supply chain by allowing H-2A applicants with a valid status to start work immediately after submitting a petition. Normally a guest worker is allowed to legally stay in the U.S. for up to three years, but the changes are allowing workers to stay for longer and allowing family members to apply for H-4 status.

The Undocumented are Being Left Out
However, many workers are itinerant and don't have the luxury of establishing a relationship with an employer prior to arriving in the States. These people live in fear of deportation. Many come from Mexico and many of them don't speak English. They're worried about their children who are born in the U.S., and being separated from them. Many fear that they'll be deported back to their homeland if they're caught. Current immigration laws give the undocumented a defense against deportation, but these laws are invoked at the discretion of the government or the immigration judge overseeing the case.

The undocumented workers are now being given letters by their employers that state that they are considered essential workers by the Department of Homeland Security. However, these letters are not visas or green cards and won't protect them if they are detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). As it currently stands, ICE are not trying to catch undocumented workers or performing raids. But as the world returns to normal, so will the raids and capture attempts. In the meantime, the undocumented continue to work in the fields and put themselves at risk of contracting the coronavirus.
Pay them a living wage
Adding insult to injury is the fact that these "essential workers" are paid below the living wage and living in substandard conditions while they work in the fields. Some sleep in garages converted into dormitories, some sleep in trailers, and others live in cramped quarters that aren't designed to house a large population of workers. Disease moves from person to person with ease in these kinds of conditions, and the coronavirus moves easier than most viruses. These living conditions increase the risk of the spread of COVID-19 in a vulnerable population.

It's true that the agricultural industry is making efforts to improve living conditions for their workers, but the efforts are uneven and dependent on the industry and region. The workers tend to accept these conditions as they are frequently an improvement on the living conditions in their home country, but it shouldn't be acceptable just because it's an "improvement" in some people's eyes.

Undocumented workers risk their lives to come to the United States in search of work. They do the work that most Americans turn down and put up with low wages and substandard living conditions on top of it. Their role during this emergency should not go unrewarded, whether it be in the form of green cards, naturalization, or lenience from law enforcement and changes in immigration law.