Global Workforce: Solving The Talent Shortage

You would be hard-pressed to toss a rock without hitting a business with a “for hire” sign in the window. Hyperbole aside, the unemployment rate in the Blue Earth and Nicollet County region was 2.5 percent in March of this year — well below the already-low national average of 3.5 percent.

While this may affirm the work ethic of our workforce and the quality of jobs available in our region, there is another side to low unemployment that paints a bleak picture for food and agriculture businesses with everything they need to thrive — except the people to make it happen.

Talent In The Greenseam

By Holly Callaghan

ering hiring recent graduates in need of employment-based visas or temporary worker status. “It’s not scary to hire an international student or graduate, and there’s a lot of potential for long-term employment opportunities as well. We have a lot of expertise in universities and colleges. There are a lot of people who can help facilitate this process.” high employee turnover outweighs the cost of sponsoring a work visa. “It costs me $5,000 to hire an assembler or welder, and that’s just within the first 30 days.”

Also keep in mind retention rates among international hires trend higher than their local counterparts, making them a better investment for the business long-term.

Of over 200 respondents to GreenSeam’s 2023 State of Ag survey (all with connections to agriculture), a considerable majority find the talent shortage to be the primary inhibitor of business growth. One respondent stated, “Without people, we cannot be sustainable and certainly cannot be equipped for growth.”

Many small and mid-sized rural businesses are running out of incentives to attract and retain hires from urban areas. In the words of another respondent, “We simply do not have enough people looking to move to some of these areas to work.”

A promising solution is to welcome global talent into these vacant positions — qualified candidates from outside the United States who may already call our communities home. They may be displaced employees at risk of losing their immigration status or recent graduates hoping to stay here to work. Extending unfilled positions to the global workforce is a solution that promises sustainable economic growth and community enrichment — removing the growth ceiling imposed by a talent shortage and diversifying our human capital portfolio.

But many small to mid-sized businesses feel daunted by the legal implications of hiring an employee who may need work authorization, no matter how qualified they may be.

Erin Shutte Wadzinski is an immigration attorney and owner of Kivu Immigration Law in Worthington, Minn. Shutte Wadzinski wants to dispel the intimidation factor experienced by business owners consid-

Colleges and universities connecting international students to internships see these misconceptions can cause organizations to miss out on highly educated and dedicated hires. “Something that has never changed is the notion that it’s just too much work to hire an international student,” says Jacy Fry, Director of Minnesota State University’s Kearney International Center. Fry added there are several types of work authorization available to international students which require no added time or expense for employers, because the school and student have already done the work for them. For example, students with eligible STEM degrees can spend up to three years practicing in their field without needing an employment-based visa.

When the time comes to sponsor a work visa, international students are highly knowledgeable about the process. Kim Phillips, senior human resources manager for AGCO Corp in Jackson, Minn., works with many international hires and affirms “They know their visas and they know where they need to go and what they are supposed to do when they come into an organization.”

While adequate legal counsel is imperative, wellinformed international hires alleviate some pressure from HR departments unfamiliar with the process of work visa sponsorship.

Once a business recognizes the legal feasibility of hiring global talent, there is the financial investment to consider — namely consulting and federal application fees. According to Phillips, the cost of

For small businesses grappling with the cost of legal and HR guidance, financial support is available. As part of a Small Business Administration-funded program, Mainstreet Businesses Focused on Food & Ag, GreenSeam will cover up to $3,000 of legal and HR consulting fees for food and agricultural businesses interested in hiring global talent. To qualify for support, businesses must have 500 or fewer employees and must be located or regularly conduct business within Blue Earth, Brown, Faribault, Le Sueur, Martin, Nicollet, Sibley, Waseca or Watonwan County. Registration is open through Sept. 1.

Economic prosperity in the GreenSeam depends on brave businesses to lead the charge and welcome global talent into the food and agricultural sectors. The talent shortage is the most urgent and costly challenge affecting southern Minnesota businesses.

While local universities and immigration attorneys’ offices work to demystify the legal process, organizations like GreenSeam clear the path for businesses struggling to fill talent vacancies. Welcoming the global workforce into our businesses presents a solution with exciting potential to sustainably grow our industry and elevate our region as a world-class food and agribusiness epicenter.

For more information, visit www.greenseam.org and click “MBFFA Global Workforce Program.”

Talent in the GreenSeam focuses on developing talent and promoting careers in agriculture and food. Holly Callaghan can be reached via email at HCallaghan@greenseam.org. v

Lobbyists are plentiful on Capitol Hill

In fact, according to opensecrets.org, a non-partisan, non-profit group which tracks money and influence in American politics, a staggering 467 former House and Senate members lobbied Capitol Hill during the 115th Congress to “attempt to influence the very federal government in which they used to serve.”

Think about that: Four years ago (the latest published numbers), the 467 former lawmakers asking one-time colleagues for a favor nearly equaled the number of one-time colleagues, 535, they asked.

Why? Because all that grinning, gripping, and greasing works, explained U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Maine Democrat on the House Ag Committee and a certified organic farmer.

“(T)here are 1,200 lobbyists on the Hill that work for the agriculture and food processing industry,” she told the ROP podcast. “They spend about $350 million a year on forming opinions in Washington. And that’s more than the defense industry, so don’t underestimate their power.”

For proof, just look at USDA’s organic hydroponics rule. Lobbyists pushed that choice, not voters, and American farmers are paying the price.

The Farm and Food File is published weekly through the United States and Canada. Past columns, events and contact information are posted at www.farmandfoodfile.com. v