BOISE, Idaho — New data from the Federal Department of Labor statistics show a clear increase in foreign-born labor across the United States. These workers now make up more than 18% of the total U.S. Labor Force.
"Workers have to come from somewhere, so it's not surprising at all that we are seeing an increase in foreign workers in the country," said Rick Naerebout, Ceo of the Idaho Dairymen's Association.
Hispanics and Latinos account for about half of the migrant workers in the US in 2022, totaling 21 million, while immigrants from Asia make up about one-quarter of the workforce. A declining domestic birth rate and accelerated retirement among baby boomers have helped drive the trend. Idaho's powerful dairy industry is one of the major sectors in our state that relies on foreign-born labor.
"We far outpace that 18% that you see in the study. We have got a workforce that is about 90% foreign-born in Idaho's agriculture industry," said Naerebout.
The Idaho Commission on Hispanic Affairs data shows Hispanics made up 12.5% of Idaho's Labor Force in 2018, and that number increased by 7% in 2000.
"Even here in Idaho when we report 13 and 14% of the population being Hispanic I think that's low too," said Margie Gonzales, Executive Director for the Idaho Commission on Hispanic Affairs.
Local Experts don't think those numbers accurately represent the local foreign workforce and believe it is much greater. For context, in 2020 the Hispanic Labor Force in Idaho was 105,000 people, more than double from 2018.
