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Sunday, February 26, 2017

Immigration Crackdown Worries Maryland’s Crab Industry


BALTMORE (WJZ)– The Trump Administration’s immigration crackdown is causing concern on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Crab processors fear the heated climate over immigration could impact a legal visa program that brings in crab pickers from Mexico.

Bill Seiling is the executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Seafood Industry Association, “we may get lumped in with this whole immigration issue and sort of get tarred with the same brush.”

Processors say H2-B visas are essential to fill the crab picking jobs, that there are not enough Marylanders who are trained or want to do them.

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25 comments:

Anonymous said...

There are plenty of "unemployed" folks on the shore that would gladly go to work there right??? Oh Oh thats right! They get much more on welfare!! Free phones, free meals, free housing.....who the hell needs to work right??? Thats okay, the Donald will get that straightened out too! All in due time people ....all in due time. When you have to WORK to feed your family is where we are headed.........FINALLY!

Anonymous said...

Cut off the welfare and there will be people waiting in line to pick crabs and we wont need to import people to do those jobs

Anonymous said...

The industry survived before without them they will survive now. Just more political BS

Anonymous said...

11:39 is correct!!! Have these workers ALSO GET LEGAL DOCUMENTS....DUH!

Anonymous said...

Don't sweat it. The H2-B program is in place for a reason.

Anonymous said...

I doubt that. They'll just decide to do more crime and home invasions. The money will come from somewhere. They will need that easy money.

Anonymous said...

11:39 has it right...
Cut and means test all of these programs - make them take drug/alcohol/tobacco tests as part of the continuance!

Anonymous said...

Bad news for OC this summer.

Anonymous said...

All the trash born around here are too lazy to take these jobs

Anonymous said...

All that really needs to be done is tax the visitors the same as citizens. Call it something different it they want but eliminate the tax advantage to employers for unemployment and social security taxes for non-citizens.

Anonymous said...

Be prepared for lots of shells and increased costs cuz you know the "new" employees are going to be slower than molasses in January.

Anonymous said...

Had a conversation with the owner of a crab picking operation some time ago. He said that the locals would work but they wanted to get paid cash so they wouldn't lose their welfare.

Anonymous said...

Many many people on the shore unemployed or on welfare.
Those on public assistance should be made to apply for these jobs, if they refuse, cut off their benefits. Goes for seasonal in farming and seafood. As a condition for benefits, they should prove they have applied for work.
Just don't make it easy anymore to get benefits. If you don't work, you don't eat! Offer benefits if they work. They way they will be contributing to the tax base and not as a bottom feeder! If you are totally disabled and not able to work, then just grant those people benefits.

Anonymous said...

LocL people used to do these jobs and were Proud to work and Proud of their work! We need to gef back to that!

Anonymous said...

Hire SpongeBob.

Anonymous said...

They did but obama stopped it on day 2 of his swearing in.

Anonymous said...

YUP lazy shore rednecks steal bs 4 hrs work sleep drink welfare next.

Anonymous said...

Obama stopped that so he could put more thugs on da welfare.

Anonymous said...

2:32 He should have hired them and paid them in cash(making sure he took out the appropriate withholdings) , then report them to the authorities.

Anonymous said...

The statement that the locals wont do this job is a half truth which is really nothing but a lie. There are people here that will do the job but they want more than minimum wage to do it. A skilled crab picker can produce a massive amount of meat in an hour. And they want to get paid for it. The problem is that this increases overhead and reduces profit which equals doors closing at processing facilities. This profitability problem becomes compounded by cheap foreign produced crab meat shipped in from Indonesia and other 3rd world nations that pay people next to nothing.

I dont blame the processing company one bit. They reacted to market changes effectively. The question is now how will they react to this market change and will it be enough to save them? Trump wants to tax the bejesus out of foreign products. Most people...most working people want to see welfare severely curtailed. I just want to go eat crabs a couple times a year and pick my own. The world is changing folks and we all need to change with it. The Trump administration will not be all roses and kittens, we will all feel the pinch at some point. I trust that the lean times will be followed by fat times.

Anonymous said...

Illegal immigration hurts legal immigration yet another reason to enforce the law.

Anonymous said...

Use prisoners from ECI. There...problem solved.

Anonymous said...

That's right, Marylanders USED to do it. That was before Obama made it easier to make more money by not working that what they could make picking crabs.

Anonymous said...

Obama didnt create welfare. It was in place way before he ever became president. It's been around for. Why don't you complain about other forms of government welfare. I personally hate seeing my tax dollars pay for beach replenishment for rich folks. If you buy a house on the beach and it gets earned away..... Too bad for you.

bayman said...

They have machines that do it now. Buy some and stop your crying.