— The crawfish industry is facing a labor shortage due to federal immigration caps as the state enters the start of the harvesting season, Commissioner of Agriculture Mike Strain said in a House committee meeting on Tuesday.
Most of the seasonal workers employed by the state’s crawfish peeling and packing facilities are authorized to work temporarily in the U.S., and this year, many of them are being denied visas to work, leaving the packing facilities without a workforce and causing a few to close their doors for the season.
“My personal constituent had to close four other locations and only can operate one because he can’t get the workers that he normally has no problem getting,” Rep. Dodie Horton, R-Bossier, told Strain in the hearing.
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