> Seasonal agricultural work like this has been done by kids for generations. Rivers caught fire and the air was toxic for generations too. Historical preceden

> Seasonal agricultural work like this has been done by kids for generations. Rivers caught fire and the air was toxic for generations too. Historical precedent isn't particularly compelling IMO. > I don't think we were stealing jobs from adults. If they weren't going to find involuntary workers (kids, prison slaves - the correct term as of course slavery is permitted in the US as punishment for a crime under the 14th amendment) - they would have had to raise the amount they were paying voluntary workers until someone took the job. Or it wouldn't get done. This is how leverage in employment works. To have a free market for labor and accurate pricing, you need to have voluntary participation. Involuntary participation puts all the pricing power in the hands of capital. > They started flying in seasonal workers from Puerto Rico and then Jamaica. This doesn't have to be a permitted practice re: Jamaica. In a very real way it's the job of DOL and USCIS to prevent it. After all, they already do labor conditions and prevailing wage determinations for specialty workers. Why not farm workers? And there simply aren't enough people in Puerto Rico to change the balance of power.