Sustainable Agriculture Literature Review - Boulder County

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9.3 Occupational Health and Performance
Farm workers are a major asset to agricultural operations because they provide labor
during critical agricultural production periods, however, they are one of the most
economically disadvantaged groups in the U.S. 725, 726 Compared to other low-skill jobs
(Figure 36), farm workers receive lower rates of compensation, averaging $350 - $425 a
week. The average national agricultural wage in 2006 was $9.87 an hour, including the
compensation of managers and supervisors. 727 Accounting only for non-supervisory
positions, the average rate of compensation drops considerably to $6.25 an hour. The
relatively low rates of compensation for farm workers is, according to the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS), a partial result of
a lack of other work opportunities for unauthorized workers. 728
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Figure 36: Comparison of Low-skilled Compensation Rates 729
As a result of lower compensation rates, farm workers are at a higher risk of poverty
than any other occupation. Already, 12 percent of people working in farming, fishing, and
forestry occupations were in poverty, as shown in Graph 25. 730
Graph 25: Percent of Workforce in Poverty by Occupation 731
In addition to high poverty rates, unemployment rates for farmers are greater than the
national average for all other occupations (Graph 26). 732 The USDA ERS attributes the
high unemployment rates to the seasonality of farm work. On average, hired farm
workers are employed for roughly the same number of weekly hours throughout the
year, but the number of hired farm workers at any one time varies significantly through
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