New Models for Overcoming Labor Barriers

New Models for Overcoming Labor Barriers

Project Purpose and Vision

Securing and maintaining a stable, skilled workforce is among the most critical challenges facing agriculture on Hawaiʻi Island today. Farmers regularly express concerns about labor shortages, high turnover rates, and difficulty recruiting qualified and reliable workers, all of which directly undermine the economic viability and growth potential of local agricultural operations. To address these pressing issues, HIAP, in partnership with the Hāmākua Institute and other collaborators, is leading an innovative initiative to explore and pilot new collaborative labor models that can help overcome these persistent barriers.

Project Activities and Process

Farmer and Farmworker Engagement

Over an 18-month period, this project will engage a broad cross-section of stakeholders—including at least 60 agricultural professionals, farmers, farmworkers, and labor service providers from across Hawaiʻi Island. These engagements, conducted through a series of facilitated discussions, workshops, and focus groups, aim to surface and articulate critical labor challenges as directly experienced by stakeholders. Participants will discuss existing constraints, effective strategies currently in place, and gaps that new labor models might address.

These participatory forums will be structured to highlight farmers’ first-hand experiences and preferences. Participants will evaluate a diverse range of innovative agricultural workforce models from around the world. Examples include a hiring agency model from Michigan, cooperative and collective farm structures from India, a state-supported, cooperative approach from Cuba, guest-worker recruitment processes (such as the H2-A program), and successful local nonprofit-driven initiatives like the MAʻO Organic Farms model from Oʻahu. Through careful analysis, stakeholders will weigh the strengths and weaknesses of each model—such as governance styles, resource contributions required, the degree of governmental involvement, and the potential for replication in Hawaiʻi’s unique farming environment.

Collective Analysis and Strategic Planning

Following stakeholder consultations, the Hāmākua Institute team, together with HIAP’s workforce development strategy team, will synthesize and analyze stakeholder feedback to identify priority labor solutions suited for Hawaiʻi Island. This collective analysis will focus on determining which agricultural sectors would most benefit from targeted labor solutions, and identifying the skill sets and workforce capacities essential for long-term agricultural sustainability and resilience.

The team will then prioritize these findings, clearly outlining specific labor models to pilot. This strategy will guide the mobilization of resources and inform future HIAP workforce development activities, creating alignment around practical, locally-adapted solutions that directly address the workforce needs identified by the farming community.

Education, Awareness, and Capacity Building

A key goal of the project is increasing awareness and education among stakeholders about potential labor models. The project will create an accessible set of web-based educational resources clearly describing how different models operate, their associated benefits and challenges, and step-by-step guidance on how stakeholders can implement these collaborative workforce approaches.

Complementing these materials, the project will deliver two targeted educational workshops designed to empower stakeholders to test, implement, and refine these workforce models. These interactive workshops will provide participants the opportunity to dive deeper into practical details, discuss implementation strategies, and build collaborative networks with other stakeholders.

Expected Outcomes and Value to Stakeholders

By creating an open dialogue and structured approach to workforce innovation, this initiative addresses critical workforce barriers head-on. The comprehensive approach provides practical, replicable solutions that individual farms can tailor and adopt, reducing administrative burdens and enhancing labor stability. Improved labor availability and productivity translate directly into stronger farm-level profitability, greater community resilience, and a more robust and secure local food supply.

Moreover, the collaborative nature of this project encourages ongoing knowledge exchange among farmers, labor providers, and service organizations. These strengthened networks and collaborative practices have lasting value, beyond the project's immediate timeframe, fostering a culture of cooperative innovation and shared success across Hawaiʻi Island’s agricultural community.

Next Steps and Getting Involved

This collaborative labor initiative invites farmers, farmworkers, agricultural professionals, and service providers to engage actively in exploring and shaping future labor solutions. Interested stakeholders can contribute their experience, feedback, and ideas during upcoming forums and workshops.

Through collective participation and shared ownership of the solutions developed, this initiative aims not only to tackle labor challenges but to fundamentally shift how Hawaiʻi Island’s agricultural community approaches workforce management—creating lasting benefits for farmers, farmworkers, and the broader community.

Project Funding and Support

This initiative is supported through grant funding (Project #WRGR24-002) and led by the Hāmākua Institute in partnership with the Hawaiʻi Island Agriculture Partnership (HIAP).