Oxnard workers and business owners in limbo due to uncertainty surrounding tariffs
OXNARD, Calif. — Between undocumented farm workers not showing up for work, to the slew of fires a few months ago, it’s been a difficult year for farm owner Uriel Hernandez.
“We kind of leave the politics outside of farming, but unfortunately, you kind of get dragged into it,” said the Oxnard-based Seacliff Farms Owner.
Now, the biggest concern for Hernandez is the tariffs.
“As it is, the margins for a small operation like myself are small. You put a 10%, 15% tariffs on top of some of the items we need to produce. I mean, it's going to squeeze us quite a bit more,” said Hernandez.
On Wednesday, President Trump issued a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs with most countries, in order to allow trade negotiations with those countries.
But China's sky-high tariffs remain in effect.
“A lot of people don't understand that China doesn't pay the tariffs. They just charge more. Okay. So, the consumers end up getting that cost for the most part,” said Oxnard resident, Bruce Kelly.
Many are worried these tariffs will hurt working class Americans the most.
“It is a little more difficult for those that are working here, though, who are making minimum wage to like afford and save for that because we can be here like countless hours, but like there's only so much that we can like make,” said Honeycup Coffee Manager, Alyssa Vega.
Something as simple as buying your favorite fruit like a strawberry could go up depending on what happens with these tariffs.
“I am kind of scared to see a rise in the prices of everyday goods, even groceries. Living is just going to be so expensive now,” said Bianca Santos, who lives in Oxnard.
Still, some are hopeful that the tariffs will help American businesses.
Others like Haas, an Oxnard based machine tool manufacturer, say they feel they’re being penalized for buying parts from China they can’t buy from anywhere else.
They say they will ultimately have to decide between raising their prices, which will make them lose market shares, or maintaining current pricing, which means losing money.
