FARMWORKER FACTS

1
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Number of
• farm workers in the
• United States
• 2 - 3 million

2
FARMWORKER FACTS

• States with largest
• farm worker populations
• California, Texas, Florida, Washington, Oregon
• and North Carolina

3
FARMWORKER FACTS

• 80 of U.S.
• farm workers
• are male

4
FARMWORKER FACTS

• The majority are married and living apart from
  their families

5
FARMWORKER FACTS

• 75 of U.S. farm workers were born in Mexico
• 53 are undocumented
• 25 are U.S. citizens
• 21 are legal permanent residents

6
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Average annual income
• 11,000 or 16,000 for a family

7
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Most farm workers are paid piece rate wages,
  resulting in backbreaking work in stressful
  conditions

8
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Farm work is the lowest paid job in the nation,
• second only to
• domestic labor

9
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Less than 1 of farm workers use general
  assistance welfare
• 2 use Social Security
• Less than 15 receive Medicaid
• The average grade of education completed is 6th
  grade 13 have completed high school, 13 less
  than 3 years of school

10
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Farm work is one of the three most dangerous
  occupations
• in the U.S.

11
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Farm workers suffer some of the highest rates of
  exposures to toxic chemicals

12
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Farm workers suffer
• high rates of
• skin disorders,
• eye injuries,
• heat stress, and
• tuberculosis

13
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Farm worker children have higher rates of
  pesticide exposure, malnutrition, and dental
  diseases

14
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Poor housing conditions lead to lead poisoning,
  respiratory illnesses, ear infections and
  diarrhea

15
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Only 10 of farm workers have health insurance

16
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Farm workers were NOT included in the
• National Labor
• Relations Act
• of 1935 which gave other workers the
• right to organize

17
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, only large
  farms are required to pay farm workers the
• minimum wage

18
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are
  NOT required to pay overtime to farm workers

19
FARMWORKER FACTS

• Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the minimum
  age for
• farm work is 12, not 16 as in most other jobs

20
FARMWORKER FACTS

• H2A or guestworker programs undermine protections
  for farm workers already in the U.S. the
  current immigration climate is calling for an
  increasing erosion of the protections for
• farm workers

21

• SUPPORT JUSTICE FOR
• FARM WORKERS IN THE
• UNITED STATES

22

• Produced by
• FARMWORKER ASSOCIATION OF FLORIDA
• www.floridafarmworkers.org
• 407-886-5151