With spring less than two weeks away, seasonal businesses on the Cape and Islands are in limbo, wondering if they’ll be able to get enough help for summer.
Cape and Islands businesses rely heavily on two visa programs — J-1, for college students, and H-2B, for other workers, many of whom return year after year. Early this year, Former President Donald Trump extended a freeze on foreign workers entering the U.S. on temporary work visas through March 31. He cited continued weakness in the U.S. labor market due to the coronavirus pandemic.
At Murdick’s Fudge on Martha’s Vineyard, summer visitors watch the crew pour the molten confection onto a slab of marble and work it to just the right consistency. That takes skill, and general manager Mike McCourt doesn’t know whether his most experienced workers will make it here this summer to do the work.
“I have three fudge makers that are in Jamaica, and it's a process that can take up to a year and a half to train,” he said.
His cafe manager also lives in Jamaica.
Although Trump’s visa ban is about to expire, which solves the problem for J-1 students and some of the H-2Bs, federal law caps the number of H-2B visas each year. And with the cap, Murdick’s Fudge could be out of luck.
“They have this lottery system,” McCourt said, “and if you don't get in A or B, you're pretty much on the outside looking in, unless they add to the cap. And we got picked C.”
There’s a chance the cap could be raised — but in the meantime, it’s wait and worry.
“It's a little unfair that your business is basically put in a gamble situation, and you have to cross your fingers and... a lot of sleepless nights, to say the least,” he said.
Nancy Gardella, Executive Director of the Martha’s Vineyard Chamber of Commerce, said despite the former president's claims, it’s a misconception that Americans could — or would — take those jobs.
“Ultimately, the truth — the hard, cold truth — is we don't have the available workforce on Martha's Vineyard to fill the 2,000-3,000 jobs that become available,” she said. “We simply don’t.”
She said American college students aren't available in the months they’re needed most. Many go back to school in mid-August, far too early for a tourist season that stretches into October.
Gardella said the most plentiful jobs, in hospitality and landscaping, are unattractive to retirees and sometimes not legally open to high school students.
“No one is clamoring to take those jobs,” she said.
Nor could most people afford to live on the Vineyard for what the summer help earns. Many seasonal employers have to offer housing to make it feasible for workers to come. A combination of federal and state rules, and prevailing wages, means entry-level pay at Murdick’s is about $14 an hour for H-2B workers.
Congressman Bill Keating’s office said Congress has authorized the Secretary of Homeland Security to raise this year’s cap on H-2B visas from 66,000 to 116,000.
Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was just sworn in February 2nd, and to date, he has not acted.
Keating has advised businesses not to wait in making their plans for the summer.
“As we open up more and more, we want to make sure ... they have the full complement of people necessary to indeed open up,” he said.
Meanwhile, speculation about a post-vaccine travel boom on the Cape and Islands is just warming up, and seasonal businesses are watching and hoping.
"We are anticipating — hoping — for strong seasonal demand in travel, and all the amenities and services that guests use while on Cape Cod," said Wendy Northcross, CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce.
