However. the Senator reported that "There is a shortage of qualified farmworkers." in West Virginia and he discounted any help from proposed Ateams--calling them "only a stopgap." Senator ALLOTT. of Colorado. said a prospective shortage of workers in his State caused a considerable cutback in plantings and resulted in a shrinkage of acreage to meet the worker supply. with corresponding damage to the general economy of that State. ALLoTT also reported on an exchange he had with Secretary Wirtz and expressed amazement that to the Secretary laborers were just statistics--a description that could explain some of the directives that emanate from the Department of Labor. During the debate a news story from an Illinois paper was read. reporting that DeKalb (Ill.) area truck farmers are faced with a labor shortage because former migrants from Texas were not available this year because of competition from other areas. Finally Senator SIMPsON of Wyoming accused Secretary Wirtz of false promises and misrepresentations during the recruiting of Ateams for work in Californiaan accusation which receives support among Ateam members from other States also. Wirtz lone supporter in the exchange was Senator WLnasAmS of New Jerseylong a foe of the supplemental worker program. Almost at the time the Senator was supporting this program to eliminate foreign workers by attracting more domestics with higher wages. the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported that growers in New Jersey arent too happy over the fact that contracts with Puerto Ricans this year are $1.10 per hour. plus a 5centanhour bonus for those workers who stay a full season. The bank said the new contract represents an increase of 20 cents an hour over rates paid Puerto Ricans in New Jersey last year and growers are worried this *1111 mean an increase in labor costs for all migrant laborers. It would seem that Senator WiLLIAMS could spend some time at home before he worries about California. Is the $4 Billion Excise Tax Cut Bene. fiting the American Consumer?
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migrant migrants