Lamb prices up, but wage rule worries sheep ranchers
sheepherders. All have been working for him for at least 10 years. The increase in wagesdue to theovertime rulecausedhim topencil out the impact onhisbottomline. To stay in business, he said a third of his sheep would need to be sold, and a third of his herders would be out of a job. All this comes at a timewhen landman- agers, cities and counties are realizing the value of targeted grazing by livestock to prevent wildfires. This niche for sheep and goats is rapidly gaining interest as fire prevention in drought-stricken California becomes paramount. Targetedgrazingasa fireprevention tool has become another source of income for sheep producers in recent years. Those who offer this service bring animals to ur- ban and rangeland settings to reduce fuel loads. Some flocks also graze under solar panelsonlargesolar farmsforweedcontrol. CWGA President Ed Anchordoguy said the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition sees livestock grazing as a con- servation tool. Andrée Soares, association vice pres- ident and operator of Star Creek Land Stewards in Los Banos, said 39 California cities in 34 counties have hired flocks to minimize fire risks in inaccessible areas. Herders, she said, are a vital part of this service and it would not be possible to achieve the fuel reductionprogramswith- out them. Soares and Clovis sheep rancher Ryan Indart said they have been meeting with key state legislators to develop an alterna-
tive and amend the law. She noted that 42 state legislators have signed a letter sent to the governor advocating for an amend- ment toAB 1066. Meanwhile, in a recent lamb market outlook report, Texas A&M Extension economist David Anderson said the cur- rent strong prices for lamb are a result of low supplies. Fewer animals are moving to slaughter, and dressed weights have also decline. The recent average, Anderson said, was 60 pounds. Cold-storage stocks are also below a five-year average and the lowest inrecent years. Lowervolumesof lambim- ports alsocontributed to lowsupplies, but have alsomade theU.S. an attractivemar- ket for Australia andNewZealand lamb. Lack of rangeland feed and higher prices for feed have driven numbers of mature sheep to market, Anderson said. Although prices for mature sheep are higher than in recent years, the loss of these sheepwill lead to smaller total flock numbers next year, and supplies of lamb could remain tight. “Tight domestic supplies are likely to keeppriceshighnext yearandattractmore imports,” Anderson said. “But production costs are also high.” DaveGoldenberg, CEOof theCalifornia Sheep Commission, said fewer sheep numbers have affected the funding for promotion of lamb andwool. (Cec i l ia Parsons i s a repor ter in Du c o r. Sh e ma y b e c on t a c t e d a t ceciliaparsons8@gmail.com.)
ByCeciliaParsons Current strong prices for lamb and a short domestic supply would normally be causeformuchoptimismamongCalifornia sheep-ranching families. But, while they welcome the better market prices, many are facing a fight to remain inbusiness. Sheep ranchers have expressed con- cerns about a new overtime and wage rule set to come into effect Jan. 1. This rule, they say, would force them to lay off herders, cut back on their flocks or exit the business altogether. “We already operate on very tight mar- gins,” said Cole Bakke, who operates IOU Sheep Company with his family in Tulare County. Costs for feed and transportation continuetorise,hesaid.Theloominghikein herder compensation is a serious concern. Assembly Bill 1066, which was signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016, followed by an amended wage order in 2019, requires sheepherders be paid overtime wages. Thenewwageorderwasmodifiedwith- out a comment period or industry input fromorganizations such as the California Wool Growers Association and others al- most three years after it was signed and became law. Historically, sheepherders have been exempt fromstate hourlyminimumwage
and hourly overtime requirements due to the unique nature of the job. According toMonica Youree, executive director ofWesternRangeAssociation, the newwage ruleswill immediately result ina 119%increase insheepherderwages. That means monthly salaries would go from $1,955 to $4,286. Youree noted that sheep- herders now receive housing and in some cases food andphones as part of their job. This would bring California’s sheep- herders toacompensationlevelmore than twice what is paid to similar workers in 11 other sheep andwool-producing states. “Yes, they are on call 24hours aday, but onmost days they fill water tanks, maybe move some fence.Most of the time there is no physical labor involved, and certainly not for 24 hours,” Bakke said. California Wool Grower Association leaders have been very vocal about their request for an exemption to the rule, based on the unique nature of a sheep- herder’s job. DanMacon, a former associationpres- ident, said there are about 175 family sheep operations in the state and they employ about 350herders annually.Most herders are Peruvian andwork under the H-2A program. Bakke, who runs bands of sheep in the Central Valley, currently employs 12
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6 Ag Alert September 22, 2021
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