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Need work? Got skills? Willing to try life in Canada? Well, Canada’s federal government has opened a skilled labor program for  “…to 24 eligible occupations, in addition to applicants with a qualifying job offer or those applying...
The dairy lobby is flexing its legislative muscles this week with some progress on a couple fronts. Today, Governor Cuomo came through on a promise he made at the Yogurt Summit last summer to raise the threshold when strict environmental rules...
Plenty of White House budget analysis in the news today. On the agriculture side of things, President Obama wants to make deep cuts to the direct payment to farmers program, which has been widely criticized as misguided government spending. Farmers...
  Immigration is certainly back in the news. Politicians, analysts and voters wrestle over what to do with people who enter a country in violation of proper procedure. Tighten borders? Deportation? Guest worker program? Amnesty? Even for...
The news leading the headlines over the weekend heralded an agreement in principle among eight bipartisan Senators, including New York Senator Chuck Schumer, regarding a guest worker program. It would target low-skilled jobs in industries like...


Immigration
May 18, 2013 — The bipartisan immigration overhaul proposed by the Senate's Gang of Eight has been the target of scores of amendments. So far, the bill has largely held its own, but its prospects for getting through Congress are uncertain.
May 16, 2013 — The group of eight Republicans and Democrats says that it has overcome obstacles and agreed on a tentative plan to overhaul the nation's immigration system.
May 14, 2013 — The Senate Judiciary held its second round of debate on changes to the bipartisan immigration bill. Tuesday's focus was visas for workers, including visas for skilled technical work. David Welna talks to Melissa Block.
May 11, 2013 — NPR's congressional correspondent David Welna speaks with host Scott Simon about the flurry of last-minute amendments, most from conservative Republicans, to alter the bipartisan immigration legislation.
May 10, 2013 — Robert Siegel speaks with political commentators E.J. Dionne of The Washington Post and Brookings Institution, and Reihan Salam of National Review Online's The Agenda blog. They discuss immigration and the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
 

Special Reports

Audio Series
Farm to Farm, Family to Family: David Sommerstein travels with NC dairy farmers to a Mexican village many of their migrant workers call home.
Audio Series
Hispanic Workers on North Country Farms
Five years ago, just a handful of farmers in the North Country employed Hispanic workers. Now many use workers from Latin America. The transition can be a bumpy one, for farmers and for the people they hire. David Sommerstein tells their stories in this ongoing series.
H2A workers on a North Country Farm. Photo by David Sommerstein
H2A workers on a North Country Farm. Photo by David Sommerstein

Will immigration reform ease NY's farm labor shortage?

As lawmakers in Washington debate the immigration reform bill released last month, farmers in New York State are hoping to find enough workers to fully staff their operations.

The Senate Judiciary Committee spent a day last week amending the 844-page bill, legislation that includes changes to guest worker programs. The changes may be good news for New York farmers.  Go to full article
Hispanic men and women - some of them quite young - provide labor illegally on many dairy farms. Photo: David Sommerstein

Undocumented farmworkers weigh benefits against risks

New York's farms employ about 60,000 people and no one knows how many of those workers are here illegally. According to one estimate, 70 percent of the state's agricultural workforce is undocumented.
Some stay for years, long enough to raise a family. But it's risky.  Go to full article
The Vermont State Capitol. Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/afagen/8395548101/">Adam Fagen</a>, Creative Commons, some rights reserved

VT legislature tackling major issues before session's end

The Vermont legislative session is winding down for the year, but lawmakers still plan to tackle some hot button issues over the next week.  Go to full article
Graphic from VT human trafficking task force [http://www.ccvs.state.vt.us/nomoreslaves]

Joining forces to stop North Country human trafficking

Human trafficking is a growing problem across the country...including here in the North Country. Undocumented farmworkers can be threatened with deportation. Sex workers or...  Go to full article

VT House weighs driver's licenses for migrant workers

The Vermont House is hearing testimony on a bill that would grant drivers' licenses to people living in Vermont regardless of their legal status.

At yesterday's...  Go to full article
Hispanic men and women - some of them quite young - provide labor illegally on many dairy farms. Photo: David Sommerstein

Schumer says immigration bill will help NY dairy farms

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer says a new bipartisan immigration deal will provide an economic boost to New York farms and the agriculture industry.

In a ...  Go to full article
Hispanic men and women - some of them quite young - provide labor illegally on many dairy farms. Photo: David Sommerstein

Lawmakers push visas for dairy workers

Lawmakers on both sides of Lake Champlain say Congress is making progress on immigration reform. And they want to make sure the dairy industry is a part of it.
...  Go to full article
Sen. Andrew Lanza, a sponsor of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in the New York State Senate. Photo: <a href="http://www.nysenate.gov/senator/andrew-j-lanza">Sen. Lanza website</a><br />

Fighting sex trafficking in New York state

Forcing young women and men into a life of prostitution is a very lucrative business.

It may sound like the stuff of Hollywood, but the sex trafficking trade is...  Go to full article

VT Senate considers driver's licenses for migrant workers

A bill in the Vermont Senate would allow migrant farm workers access to driver's licenses.

Vermont is home to approximately 1500 migrant workers - many of whom...  Go to full article
Aaron Calderon, Malik McKenzie, and Sabel Bong, of SUNY Canton, prepare to march down Main Street. Photo: David Sommerstein

How human trafficking happens all around us

According to a study by Hofstra University, more than 11,000 people in New York State have been victims of human trafficking since 2000. They may have been sex workers, or...  Go to full article

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