Kansas agriculture businesses are struggling to find enough skilled workers to do things like drive trucks and operate equipment. That could hamper the growth of one of the state’s largest industries. A recent survey from the Kansas Department of Agriculture shows that most companies have had to offer better pay to fill jobs the past two years. Companies are also turning to workers outside the traditional workforce — hiring high school students, retirees and formerly incarcerated people. Another option is bringing in seasonal workers from other countries. Department of AG Marketing Director, Russell Plaschka says it’s not always easy, saying it’s a government program, it takes a lot of paperwork, and it takes a lot of cost to get the workers over here, and any way we can alleviate that pressure is a benefit to our economy.
The Kansas Agriculture Industry contributes more than $75 billion to the state economy and supports 14% of the state’s jobs.
