Agricultural & Foreign Labor Services April News and Highlights

The Agricultural and Foreign Labor Services (AFLS) team hosted the 2025 Hybrid Agricultural Employers Informational Meeting held on March 20, 2025, both in-person at the Michigan Works! Service Center in Traverse City and virtually to accommodate employers from different parts of the state.

The meeting was planned to educate and support Michigan growers with essential knowledge and tools to enhance their worker recruitment efforts. The nearly 70 growers in attendance heard about using the Agricultural Recruitment System (ARS) as a solution to their labor needs. 

The ARS helps agricultural employers recruit qualified U.S. workers on a temporary or seasonal basis and provides workers seeking temporary agricultural employment with job opportunity information. ARS helps agricultural employers meet temporary and seasonal labor needs by matching U.S. job seekers with agricultural jobs.

Through the ARS, State Workforce Agencies can recruit and refer qualified U.S. workers from within a state and from other states when they anticipate there are fewer temporary agricultural workers available than needed in the local area.  

Employers looking for assistance with posting job openings on Pure Michigan Talent Connect (MiTalent.org), assistance in locating workers using the ARS or locating information in planning for the 2025 agricultural season are encouraged to contact the Agricultural Employment Liaison in your region or visit your local Michigan Works! Service Center.

Farmworker Awareness Week allows us to reflect on the contributions from roughly 2.4 million farmworkers on farms across the U.S. and the millions more working around the world to support our food system. Farmworkers are essential in bringing fresh food to our tables, performing hard and skilled labor at every step of the supply chain.

Whether you’re a young student, just launching your career, re-entering the workforce, or considering a change to your current profession, career exploration and awareness is a valuable step in the process.

Career Exploration & Awareness Month shines a spotlight on discovering the career pathways available to Michigan residents and the employment, training and educational opportunities that come with them.

Learn more about career exploration resources here.

Staff Updates

Our team is excited to welcome Agricultural Employment Liaison (AEL) Clarikssa Mejia to a full time, permanent position. Clarikssa's significant investment of time, energy and perseverance has shown just how exceptional she is at her work. We look forward to relying on her commitment to excellence and her ability to adaptability, which makes her an outstanding addition to our team.

Clarikssa works from the Michigan Works! Service Center in Benton Harbor.

We are thrilled to announce Janet García-Hobbs has joined us as our new Foreign Labor Services Manager. With over 11 years of experience in workforce development, Janet specializes in connecting employers with skilled workers and promoting equitable employment opportunities for all job seekers.

Janet has demonstrated strong leadership in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, including her role as President of the DEI Committee and her work with the Indiana Commission of Latino Affairs. She has also held key roles at the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, including State Monitor Advocate and Foreign Labor Certification Coordinator, where she streamlined operational processes and ensured federal compliance.

Janet holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas and a Graduate Certificate in Project Management from Purdue Global University and is working toward her PMP certification. We are excited to have Janet on board and look forward to the fresh perspectives she will bring to our team!

For over 40 years, outreach workers and Monitor Advocates have provided important support to U.S. agricultural workers and employers throughout the country. The Monitor Advocate System is a federal/state monitoring system that ensures migrant and seasonal farmworkers (MSFW) have equitable access to career services, skill development and workforce protections offered by American Job Centers (Michigan Works!), so they may improve their living and working conditions.

The Monitor Advocate System has four key components:

1. Conduct outreach to farmworkers where they live, work and gather
2. Monitor Services provided to farmworkers at American Job Centers (Michigan Works! Service Centers)
3. Facilitate the Employment Service and Employment-Related Law Complaint System, which helps resolve labor-related complaints
4. Promote the Agricultural Recruitment System for U.S. workers, which connects job seekers who need employment to employers who need workers

A recent review of services provided to farmworkers at the West Central Michigan Works! region consisting of three MSFW-significant and three non-MSFW significant offices identified eight of eight Equity Ratio Indicators were met. Of the more than 4,300 customers were provided employment services, nearly 600 were farmworkers.