Tag: Los Angeles and San Francisco

Little else is sweet in Huron, where jobs not displaced by automation in farming are mostly done by hand, and residents struggle to scrape by. The Central Valley has long been short on resources no matter which political party is in power. Democratic and Republican candidates for Congress have blamed incumbents for doing little to create higher-paying jobs, curb homelessness, clean up blight or solve disparities in health care and access to good schools. Despite a big voter-registration advantage for Democrats in the district that includes Huron, they have struggled to unseat a three-term GOP congressman. Despite Democrats' 16-point registration advantage, Rep. David Valadao easily won re-election with the third-lowest vote count of any member of Congress in 2016. The national average is 12.3 percent. Picking or packing crops pays about $11 to 12.50 an hour, but jobs are seasonal, and many people go months without work. "There's nothing for the kids to do," said Espinoza, who grew up in Huron. "Orchards ... give a lot to the owner, but not the people," Leon said. Woolf said he employs about 450 locals, mostly full time, noting that whatever criticisms there are about farm work, "it's better than not having a farm job."