Valley farm laborers finding work in other states

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Small, outlying towns in Central California are losing farm laborers who are finding work in other states.

When large groups of people move away from already tiny communities it's not just the work force that's affected.

If you look out in the fields of Firebaugh, you'll find they're not just missing water but the people that normally care for them.

"They're going to packing houses. They're going to Alaska to pack salmon, they're going to Nebraska to work in pork processing facilities. They're going to other places to find work because it's just not here," said Firebaugh Mayor Pro Tem Craig Knight.

And when the farm laborers pack and up and leave, the students that fill the hallways at these schools go with them.

"For every student you have you're getting paid a certain amount of money. And when you lose students of course at the end of the year you're not going to earn that same dollar," said Superintendent Russell Freitas of the Firebaugh Las Deltas Unified School District.

Freitas says they're down about 60 students this enrollment year. And in the wintertime Firebaugh Las Deltas Unified School District typically loses many more. An increasing concern for the small school district.

"In a district that continues to see their enrollment drop you would have to then make those tough decisions as far as laying off employees," Freitas explained.

Freitas says they haven't had to lay off any teachers since five years ago. But that could change depending on the winter rain, or lack thereof.