By Twyla Stevens, Chief Human Resources Officer at Professional Swine Management, Carthage Veterinary Services, LLC
This is part four of a four-part series by Carthage Veterinary Services, LLC. In this series of articles, we hope to shed insight into how rural America can embrace the evolution of their small-town communities through the changing labor pool.
During this series, we have highlighted the relationship of rural America, an international workforce, and the swine industry. Each entity needs the other for sustainability. Rural American continues to experience a declining population driven by many factors. International skilled workers seek the opportunity to work in their field of study in a progressive system. And due to the increase in demand for protein, the swine industry needs both a rural setting and skilled workers. When the relationship works – it works well.
The question is where do you begin? First, we need to understand the needs of each entity in this supply and demand puzzle. The rural community employers of all types have the demand for workers to return to their communities. Most of the time, the rural areas do not have the labor pool of skilled workers willing to live outside the urban areas. Decreased population shrinks the tax base which puts pressure on the local municipalities’ tax budgets to provide amenities to attract the younger generations to return home to the family farm or attract others to move to rural agricultural areas. The lack of necessary amenities such as adequate local healthcare, local grocery stores to combat food deserts, and internet availability, play a part in the decision of the children of rural residents to relocate of urban areas and hinders the ability of local communities to attract businesses.
In most rural communities, agriculture industry workforce is their tax base. As the workforce dwindles, the decision makers of the various employers are faced with a tough dilemma. Never wanting to stop working the land they love or leave the communities they have been part of for generations, they are faced with how to make this work.
Where can we find the people to make this work?
The supply of skilled labor is always top of mind for all employers, but we recognize it has a higher significance for rural communities. Without the ability to attract young families, many turn to the international markets. Many skilled international workers are living in areas that have low demand for their skills.
We have found international workers bring a skillset that matches the competencies needed to achieve successful production by industry standards. The internationals we hire are committed to learning and working hard to be successful. They have degrees equivalent to a bachelor’s degree in their field of study – they come with basic knowledge and are eager to put their knowledge to work.
Get the process started
First, collaboration is needed between community leaders and employers in the area to gain the understanding of the pros and cons of an international workforce. Internationals live, work and play in the local communities, bringing a much-needed economic impact but also a cultural diversity impact that will require some adjustments in the community. This includes acclimation to the practices and expectations in their new community by the international and acclimation of the community members to the new culture(s) that will add to the revitalization of their hometown.
While the community and employers are collaborating, the international candidates are applying for the open positions. The positions are posted on specific international sites and in international networking groups. The candidates are vetted to ensure they meet the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) qualifications to obtain the appropriate visa before they are interviewed. This requires the candidate to submit appropriate educational documents to the recruiter and the recruiter has a conversation to understand the candidates’ intentions on applying to work outside their home country.
Hire good candidates
Now for the easiest step in the process: interview and hire candidates. Offers are made by the employer and accepted by the candidates. So far, the process is very similar to the hiring process of local candidates.
Once the candidate accepts, the process turns to the legal professionals to prepare the legal documents required for the approval to work in the U.S. The immigration attorney and their team will translate all documents and prepare the consular package of 64 pages the candidate must present to the Embassy Consular at their assigned appointment. Given the Embassy closures due to the pandemic over the last three years, getting an appointment has been trying, time consuming and requires patience.
The Embassy appointment is an interview that will decide whether the candidate receives the approval to work in the U.S. During this appointment, the candidate answers questions ranging from who they will be working for and what they will be doing to why they want to leave their country and if on a non-immigrant visa, prove they intend to return to their country by providing their continued ties with the country.
This is an intimidating process for the candidate because the person sitting across the desk at the Embassy decides their future. If denied, a debrief is held to understand why and what needs to be adjusted to gain approval. If approved, candidates utter a sigh of relief and must await their approval documents to arrive by mail – 10 to 14 days. During this wait, the candidate prepares for their move to the U.S.
A new home
It has taken approximately three months from the start of the process until the candidate arrives at their new home. To ensure the time, money and effort is well spent during this period, constant communication is required between the candidate and the employer to build a relationship of trust. As the employer, you are asking the new hire to leave the security of their family, fly (sometimes for the first time) to a rural part of America, and all while only carrying a backpack with no American dollars and often unable to speak the new country’s language. This is daunting for many. Those that decide to come are here because they have a driven desire to be here. This trust relationship is foundational to the success of your program.
Good communication includes coordination of transportation and arrival to their new location, ensuring the candidate brings all required documents, understanding transportation needs once at work, meeting housing needs, and bridging the communication gap.
Coming full circle
Once the new international employee is ready to start their journey, success will be based on the implementation of the plans the community leaders and the employer developed in the first step.
A successful international program takes dedication, diligence and patience. Goggle VISA workers and you’ll get 136,000,000 results. Given the multitude of laws and regulations governed by the USCIS for each of the 185 VISAs, it may be helpful to outsource assistance to navigate the international hiring process.
This relationship between employers and international workers has proven to be a success for all party’s sustainability. Rural communities revitalized, agriculture businesses continue to grow and expand, and the newcomers to the heartland get to strive for their “American Dream.”
Why does this relationship work so well? Each entity has learned to adapt and evolve because the future will be what we make it.
More from the International Labor Shapes Rural America series:
International Labor Shapes Rural America: Power of Unique Perspectives
International Labor Shapes Rural America: Revitalization of Main Street
