California Farm Worker Statistics Previewed

Many inquiries about the personal and employment characteristics of California agricultural workers are received by Cooperative Extension staff. A unique and rich source of such information is the National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS), conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) since 1989 in accord with provisions of the 1986 immigration reform act.

In collaboration with the DOL Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, the Agricultural Personnel Management Program is preparing to issue a special California report of NAWS findings about workers who perform seasonal agricultural services (SAS). This report will present results of 1,844 interviews in the state conducted between October 1, 1989 and October 1, 1991.

Textual and graphical descriptions are organized in the following major sections: Birthplace and Employment Eligibility; Demographics, Family and Household Composition; Schooling, Literacy, and English Skills; Participation in the Labor Force; SAS Job Characteristics aAnd Conditions; Activity Other than U.S. Farm Work; and Income, Assets and use of Public Programs. The data show, for example, that:

• 82% of California SAS workers were born in Mexico, only 8% in the U.S.
• 53% of the foreign-born have resided in U.S. 10 years or longer
• 62% obtained legal status through the special agricultural worker (SAW) program
• 9% of interviewees are not eligible for employment in the U.S.
• median age is 32; 25% are 24 or younger
• 74% are male
• 66% are married
• 60% live with one or more family members when in SAS work
• of the 60% with children, 35% do not live with their children when in SAS work
• 91% are Hispanic
• 71% have 8 or fewer years of education
• median education level is 6th grade for those schooled abroad, 11th grade for those in U.S.
• 88% are native Spanish-speakers
• 10% can speak English well
• 35% have taken adult education classes
• workers spend an average of 63% of the year in SAS work, 4% in non-SAS employment, 19% in the U.S. unemployed, and 14% out of the U.S.
• 69% are hired directly by growers and packers
• 86% of SAS workers overall and 97% of those employed by farm labor contractors work in fruits, nuts, and vegetables
• 51% of SAS workers overall and 63% of those employed by farm labor contractors perform harvest tasks
• 69% are paid on an hourly basis, a median rate of $5.41
• 67% report being covered by workers' compensation, and fewer by unemployment insurance; 32% have health insurance
• 18% live in employer-provided housing
• median individual income is $7,500-9,999 (data are in categories only), and median family income is $10,000-12,499
• 55% own capital assets, most commonly a vehicle
• 49% have family incomes below poverty level
• 67% are unemployed sometime during the year, an average of 2.2 months, though only 38% of those workers apply for UI benefits
• 11% receive food stamps, 2% AFDC

Publication of the California report is expected by year-end and will be announced in the next issue of Labor Management Decisions. To request earlier notification of availability, contact Betsey Tabraham at 510/642-2296.

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