But high labor costs and an influx of foreign produce have reduced profit margins and forced some Southwest Michigan farms to close. Most sources believe about 40% to 50% of U.S. farm workers are undocumented, although farm workers in Midwestern states are more likely to have legal status than those on the West Coast. A survey of farm workers by the Center for Migrants’ Rights indicated farm workers from other countries face underpayment, discrimination, unsafe conditions, and other rights violations. Workers who find their way to an attorney may eventually get help, but H-2A workers are still regularly denied their rights. Machinery capable of replacing farm workers “is being worked on, but we’re actually pretty far from that being feasible,” Bardenhagen says.