The Associated Press

NEW CARLISLE, Ohio - On a dusty road that bisects rows of young maple trees, five Mexican workers take time from the backbreaking labor in the orchard to chat with Benito Lucio.

His khakis and crisp white shirt set him apart from the others, who wear bandannas and hats to shield themselves from the hot sun.

But Lucio knows all about their hard work. For years, he spent summers toiling in these Ohio fields before attending college and "leaving the migrant stream."

Quickly, talk turns to immigration.

"My son has been waiting for years," one worker said. He applied to come to the United States but hasn't heard anything.

Lucio explains the application forms and tells the men they have to pay attention to the dates and deadlines. And they have to keep checking with immigration officials.

"I can't tell them enough how important it is to be diligent. There are dates and priority numbers, and they need to pay attention or they'll have to start all over again," he said. "They have to document everything."

Lucio, 48, is Ohio's monitor advocate, a position set up in every state to ensure that the thousands of migrant workers coming here each summer are treated fairly.

He investigates complaints of worker abuse and connects migrant workers with growers. And Lucio coordinates interactions among dozens of advocate agencies.

This can be tricky.

He is both advocate and bureaucrat, a dual role that earns him both praise and criticism from his constituency. His job is complicated as well by the nature of his clientele, whose members often are here illegally and, therefore, are difficult to track.

He's empowered to document problems in an industry where it's impossible even to get an accurate count of the work force.

The Ohio Migrant Census that Lucio put together showed there were 15,193 migrant workers in the state. But that excluded a host of categories, including farmers already living in Ohio, dairy workers, residents of unlicensed migrant camps and the thousands of undocumented workers.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service estimates 65 percent of workers nationally are here illegally; Lucio and others call that a very conservative estimate.

"It can be a real challenge. But I'm not in the business of immigration. I don't ask them about their status, but sometimes they tell me anyway," he said. "Then I can't really help them. And that's hard."

Critics say the watchdog for migrant labor should not also work for a government agency that prompted the complaints in the first place. They argue that the monitor advocates are forced to follow regulations that do not work for a largely undocumented migrant population.

Lucio acknowledged his job is unlike that of other activists.

He tries to solve issues through legal channels and documentation.

"Twenty years ago, I wasn't like this. I wanted to go in and storm the world, too. But there are better ways to solve problems," he said.