Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Tuesday 29 May 2018
Visa woes have summer businesses looking to Puerto Ricans

By DAVID SHARP and CLAU- am very grateful."
DIA TORRENS In Phippsburg, Smith gave
Associated Press up on the H2-B program
PHIPPSBURG, Maine (AP) — years ago. But he tried
Frustrated by red tape and again last summer, desper-
visa limits on foreign work- ate for workers, and quickly
ers, tourism businesses from realized why he had be-
Maine to Missouri are turn- come so disillusioned.
ing to Puerto Ricans who His request for workers was
are fleeing a shattered delayed to the point that
economy and devastation the employees themselves
caused by Hurricane Ma- had given up by the time
ria. he received approval in
Bob Smith, owner of Sebas- August, he said.
co Harbor Resort in Phipps- He didn't bother this year.
burg, hired a half-dozen Instead, several of his work-
Puerto Ricans last summer ers from Puerto Rico arrived
for housekeeping, land- early to help get the resort
scaping and kitchen work, ready for the season.
providing relief to his over- Last week, Morales was
worked staff. This summer painting trim and perform-
he is doubling the number, ing other maintenance
and he would like to hire jobs. Other Puerto Ricans
even more. In this May 25, 2018, photo, Anthony Rios, left, works with gardener Carol Emerson at Sebasco were working in a garden;
Louis Morales, 50, of Come- Harbor Resort in Phippsburg, Maine. cooking and doing dishes
rio, Puerto Rico, is happy to Associated Press in kitchen; cleaning rooms
be here because he makes and doing laundry; and
double the salary he would pounding the uncertainty As U.S. citizens, Puerto Ri- yard hotels, but this year getting the golf course in
back home, where jobs are for businesses was a lottery cans face no travel restric- he is about 20 to 30 workers shape.
scarce. system and background tions and can work as long short. He has hired 10 to 15 Smith also hired some for-
"A lot of people lost their check delays on workers as they want. They won't workers from Puerto Rico to eign students to work at the
houses, their jobs, every- who come from dozens of solve the summer work shore up his summer work- resort under a different visa
thing. It's not the same countries from the Carib- shortage, but for some on force, he said. program, but they have to
now," said Morales, a bean to Croatia. the mainland it's helping as Aveluz Costello was get- leave before the season
maintenance worker who On Friday, Homeland Se- employers frantically try to ting paid $7.25 per hour at comes to an end.
worked at Sebasco last curity Secretary Kirstjen fill slots, with Memorial Day the front desk of a hotel in He has also hired work-
year and has recruited Nielsen announced 15,000 weekend signaling the un- Puerto Rico last year, bare- ers from Colorado, Utah
more residents from Come- additional visas and ac- official start of the summer ly making enough money and Washington state this
rio to join him. knowledged reforms were tourism season. to pay the bills and help summer.q
Employers large and small needed. Many mainland businesses maintain her mother. Now,
are seeking alternative so- With Maine's unemploy- have been hiring people the 26-year-old Puerto Ri-
lutions as demand contin- ment rate below 3 percent, from the Caribbean ter- can says she makes $18.50
ues to outstrip the annual there aren't enough local ritory for years, and they per hour as the supervisor
allotment of 66,000 H-2B people willing to take those sent recruiters after the hur- of the housekeeping de-
temporary visas, which are seasonal jobs, Smith said. ricane. partment of Snider's Nan-
issued for workers holding "People say you should give More than 30,000 business- tucket hotel.
down seasonal, nonagri- these jobs to Americans. es closed and an estimat- "I am able to send money
cultural jobs. If you can find 'em, then ed 130,000 to more than to my mother," she said.
Critics fear that immigra- that's great," he said. "The 200,000 left for the main- "Of course, I miss her terri-
tion politics were playing only Americans we can land after Maria struck as a bly, but we are both more
a role in program changes find to do the work right Category 4 storm last Sep- comfortable financially. I
starting last summer. Com- now are in Puerto Rico." tember, causing more than
$100 billion in damage, the
government said.
In the Missouri entertain-
ment mecca of Branson,
about 400 Puerto Rican
workers have been recruit-
ed over the past year to
work in the hospitality and
nursing industries.
"When we look at the avail-
able avenues to attract
workers, we are very limit-
ed," said Jeff Seifried of the
Branson Chamber of Com-
merce.
Off the coast of Massa-
chusetts, Mark Snider used
to have about 80 foreign
guest workers for his Nan-
tucket and Martha's Vine-