Sp Sy 8 (2-05) Farm Labor National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released February 18, 2005, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on Farm Labor call Mark Aitken at 202-720-6146, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Hired Workers Down 12 Percent, Wage Rates Up 4 Percent From a Year Ago There were 749,000 hired workers on the Nation’s farms and ranches during the week of January 9-15, 2005, down 12 percent from a year ago. Of these hired workers, 574,000 workers were hired directly by farm operators. Agricultural service employees on farms and ranches made up the remaining 175,000 workers. Farm operators paid their hired workers an average wage of $9.81 per hour during the January 2005 reference week, up 40 cents from a year earlier. Field workers received an average of $8.73 per hour, up 34 cents from last January, while livestock workers earned $9.19 per hour compared with $8.83 a year earlier. The field and livestock worker combined wage rate, at $8.91 per hour, was up 36 cents from last year. The number of hours worked averaged 36.8 hours for hired workers during the survey week, down 3 percent from a year ago. The largest decreases in the number of hired farm workers from last year occurred in California, Florida, and in the Southern Plains (Oklahoma and Texas), Lake (Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin), and Appalachian II (Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia) regions. In California, record rainfall prior to and during the reference week severely curtailed field activities in the southern half of the State. Elsewhere, cool, foggy conditions persisted. Therefore, the demand for hired workers was down considerably. The Florida hurricanes of 2004 severely damaged or destroyed several large nurseries, lessening the need for hired workers. In the Southern Plains, heavy rains in Texas slowed vegetable planting and cotton harvest, so fewer workers were required. Lower inventories of hogs and dairy cattle in the Lake region lessened the demand for hired workers. In the Appalachian II region, unseasonably warm weather for most of the reference week was in sharp contrast to last year, when a major winter snowstorm in Tennessee had caused peak demand for livestock workers. The largest increases in the number of hired farm workers from a year ago were in the Corn Belt I (Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio), Northern Plains (Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota), Mountain III (Arizona and New Mexico), and Northeast I (New England and New York) regions. In the Corn Belt I region, a snowstorm and flooding in Indiana led to more supplemental feeding and livestock care, increasing the need for hired workers. Dry conditions prevailed over most of the Northern Plains region and allowed for increased movement of grain to market. Therefore, more hired workers were required. In the Mountain III region, vegetable harvest in Arizona was in full swing, necessitating more field workers. A return to more normal weather conditions in the Northeast I region compared to last year's Arctic cold snap led to a slightly higher demand for hired workers. Hired farm worker wage rates were generally above a year ago in most regions. The largest increases occurred in the Southern Plains, Mountain I (Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming), Florida, and Pacific (Oregon and Washington) regions. The higher wages in the Southern Plains were due to a larger concentration of full time workers in the work force. In the Mountain I region, wages were up due to a higher percentage of skilled machine operators in the work force. Wages in Florida and the Pacific region were higher because of more salaried workers putting in fewer hours which pushed their hourly wage higher. Farm Labor: Employment and Wage Rates, United States, January 9-15, 2005, with Comparisons 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : January 11-17, : October 10-16, : January 9-15, Farm Employment : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 : Hired Workers : 662 851 574 150 Days or More : 549 *606 478 149 Days or Less : 113 *245 96 : Agricultural Services : Workers Working on Farms : 185 *324 175 : Hired Farm & Service Workers : 847 *1,175 749 : : : Hours per Week : Hours Worked : Hired : 38.1 40.5 36.8 : : : Dollars per Hour : Wage Rate for : All Hired Workers 2/ 3/ : 9.41 *9.32 9.81 : Field & Livestock Combined : 8.55 *8.69 8.91 Field : 8.39 *8.62 8.73 Livestock : 8.83 8.91 9.19 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Excludes AK. 2/ Benefits, such as housing and meals, are provided some workers but the Values are not included in the wage rates. 3/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. Hired Workers: Number and Hours Worked by Region And United States, January 9-15, 2005 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Hired :--------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. : : Expected to be Employed : And : Number :-------------------------------: Number Region 2/ : Of : 150 Days : 149 Days : of Hours : Workers : Or More : Or Less : Worked -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------------- 1,000 ------------- Hours per Week : Northeast I : 23 20 3 36.6 Northeast II : 18 14 4 33.7 : Appalachian I : 25 22 3 33.4 Appalachian II : 28 19 9 30.0 : Southeast : 24 20 4 35.3 FL : 48 37 11 38.7 : Lake : 43 37 6 34.0 : Cornbelt I : 28 24 4 33.2 Cornbelt II : 21 18 3 35.1 : Delta : 18 16 2 30.7 : Northern Plains : 27 25 2 36.7 : Southern Plains : 50 41 9 37.0 : Mountain I : 12 11 1 38.1 Mountain II : 17 15 2 43.4 Mountain III : 19 17 2 45.2 : Pacific : 38 33 5 35.9 CA : 128 103 25 39.9 : HI : 7 6 1 36.3 : US 3/ : 574 478 96 36.8 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 14. 3/ Excludes AK. Hired Workers: Wage Rates for Type of Workers and All Hired Workers By Region and United States, January 9-15, 2005 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Type of Worker : U.S. :--------------------------------------------: Wage Rates for And : : :Field & Lvstk :All Hired Workers Region 2/ : Field : Livestock : Combined : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : Northeast I : 9.47 9.17 9.32 10.37 Northeast II : 8.47 8.76 8.62 9.66 : Appalachian I : 8.65 9.03 8.82 9.64 Appalachian II : 8.46 8.04 8.25 9.02 : Southeast : 7.96 7.25 7.71 8.41 FL : 8.50 8.60 8.51 9.52 : Lake : 9.65 9.67 9.66 10.61 : Cornbelt I : 9.40 8.95 9.18 10.06 Cornbelt II : 9.16 10.28 10.07 10.63 : Delta : 9.52 7.63 8.97 9.29 : Northern Plains : 10.26 8.60 9.20 9.82 : Southern Plains : 8.01 9.35 8.75 9.56 : Mountain I : 9.42 8.82 8.95 9.76 Mountain II : 7.37 9.65 8.83 9.93 Mountain III : 7.70 8.41 8.02 8.61 : Pacific : 9.32 9.90 9.39 10.33 CA : 8.60 10.30 8.88 9.94 : HI 4/ : 9.94 9.98 11.52 : US 3/ : 8.73 9.19 8.91 9.81 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 14. 3/ Excludes AK. 4/ Insufficient data for livestock. Hired Workers: Number and Hours Worked by Region And United States, October 10-16, 2004 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Hired :--------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. : : Expected to be Employed : And : Number :-------------------------------: Number Region 2/ : Of : 150 Days : 149 Days : of Hours : Workers : Or More : Or Less : Worked -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------------- 1,000 -------------- Hours per Week : Northeast I : 45 33 12 36.8 Northeast II : 35 28 7 41.2 : Appalachian I : 41 26 15 34.5 Appalachian II : 38 18 20 34.5 : Southeast : 31 25 6 38.1 FL : 52 44 8 39.4 : Lake : 72 43 29 39.7 : Cornbelt I : 47 32 15 35.5 Cornbelt II : 22 16 6 38.4 : Delta : 33 25 8 37.3 : Northern Plains : 44 27 17 45.3 : Southern Plains : 44 32 12 40.3 : Mountain I : 29 19 10 42.3 Mountain II : 19 14 5 41.6 Mountain III : 23 19 4 44.0 : Pacific : 68 42 26 39.3 CA : 200 *156 *44 *45.0 : HI : 8 7 1 37.5 : US 3/ : 851 *606 *245 40.5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 14. 3/ Excludes AK. Hired Workers: Wage Rates for Type of Worker and All Hired Workers By Region and United States, October 10-16, 2004 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Type of Worker : U.S. :--------------------------------------------: Wage Rates for And : : :Field & Lvstk :All Hired Workers Region 2/ : Field : Livestock : Combined : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : Northeast I : 9.37 8.64 9.10 9.81 Northeast II : 8.84 8.90 8.85 9.59 : Appalachian I : 8.38 8.30 8.35 8.94 Appalachian II : 7.75 7.56 7.70 8.14 : Southeast : 8.01 8.08 8.03 8.56 FL : 7.95 9.10 8.05 9.14 : Lake : 9.06 9.51 9.20 9.77 : Cornbelt I : 9.40 9.40 9.40 9.98 Cornbelt II : 9.00 9.38 9.16 9.72 : Delta : 7.78 8.23 7.91 8.17 : Northern Plains : 9.70 9.00 9.50 9.76 : Southern Plains : 8.44 8.68 8.53 9.34 : Mountain I : 8.25 8.62 8.40 8.84 Mountain II : 8.32 8.95 8.56 9.40 Mountain III : 7.03 8.04 7.36 7.75 : Pacific : 9.32 9.23 9.31 9.81 CA : *8.43 9.57 *8.63 *9.33 : HI 4/ : 9.97 10.01 11.52 : US 3/ : *8.62 8.91 *8.69 *9.32 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 14. 3/ Excludes AK. 4/ Insufficient data for livestock. Hired Workers: Number and Hours Worked by Region And United States, January 11-17, 2004 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Hired :--------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. : : Expected to be Employed : And : Number :-------------------------------: Number Region 2/ : Of : 150 Days : 149 Days : of Hours : Workers : or More 3/ : or Less 3/ : Worked -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------------- 1,000 -------------- Hours per Week : Northeast I : 20 18 2 38.8 Northeast II : 19 16 3 37.2 : Appalachian I : 24 20 4 35.0 Appalachian II : 32 20 12 33.6 : Southeast : 27 21 6 35.5 FL : 61 54 7 41.7 : Lake : 50 43 7 34.2 : Cornbelt I : 23 19 4 35.9 Cornbelt II : 19 18 1 33.0 : Delta : 21 18 3 32.4 : Northern Plains : 23 20 3 37.6 : Southern Plains : 60 45 15 34.0 : Mountain I : 12 11 1 35.4 Mountain II : 17 16 1 39.7 Mountain III : 16 15 1 44.9 : Pacific : 41 34 7 38.2 CA : 190 155 35 41.8 : HI : 7 6 1 39.4 : US 3/ : 662 549 113 38.1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 14. 3/ Excludes AK. Hired Workers: Wage Rates for Type of Worker and All Hired Workers By Region and United States, January 11-17, 2004 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Type of Worker : U.S. :--------------------------------------------: Wage Rates for And : : :Field & Lvstk :All Hired Workers Region 2/ : Field : Livestock : Combined : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : Northeast I : 9.72 8.56 9.10 10.10 Northeast II : 8.79 7.73 8.38 9.26 : Appalachian I : 8.36 8.76 8.53 9.16 Appalachian II : 8.76 8.59 8.66 9.16 : Southeast : 7.67 7.61 7.65 8.10 FL : 7.70 8.60 7.77 8.85 : Lake : 10.11 9.41 9.60 10.68 : Cornbelt I : 9.98 10.01 10.00 10.70 Cornbelt II : 9.12 9.79 9.50 10.15 : Delta : 8.57 8.71 8.63 9.03 : Northern Plains : 9.89 8.78 9.11 9.75 : Southern Plains : 7.46 7.97 7.73 8.43 : Mountain I : 8.29 8.72 8.64 8.92 Mountain II : 8.75 8.81 8.80 9.80 Mountain III : 7.44 7.98 7.69 8.37 : Pacific : 8.58 9.31 8.78 9.82 CA : 8.41 9.25 8.54 9.47 : HI 4/ : 9.26 9.39 11.11 : US 3/ : 8.39 8.83 8.55 9.41 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 14. 3/ Excludes AK. 4/ Insufficient data for livestock. Field and Livestock Workers Combined: Wage Rates, by Type Of Farm, by Region and 48 States 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : January 11-17, 2004 :--------------------------------------------------------------- Region 2/ : Field : Other : Livestock & : All : Crops : Crops : Poultry : Farms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : Northeast : 8.71 9.04 8.55 8.77 Appalachian : 8.58 8.42 8.73 8.61 Southeast : 7.79 7.62 8.24 7.73 Lake : 10.04 10.41 9.33 9.60 Cornbelt : 10.41 8.55 9.87 9.79 Delta : 8.28 9.09 8.81 8.63 Northern Plains : 3/ 8.50 8.40 9.11 Southern Plains : 7.75 7.27 7.97 7.73 Mountain : 7.24 8.21 8.45 8.34 Pacific : 10.12 8.40 9.41 8.58 48 States : 9.26 8.23 8.89 8.55 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Field and Livestock Workers Combined: Wage Rates, by Type Of Farm, by Region and 48 States 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : January 9-15, 2005 :--------------------------------------------------------------- Region 2/ : Field : Other : Livestock & : All : Crops : Crops : Poultry : Farms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : Northeast : 8.92 9.99 8.44 9.03 Appalachian : 8.42 8.53 8.16 8.51 Southeast : 6.66 8.47 7.28 8.25 Lake : 9.27 9.55 9.70 9.66 Cornbelt : 9.13 8.85 10.02 9.56 Delta : 3/ 7.70 7.31 8.97 Northern Plains : 10.07 9.45 8.50 9.20 Southern Plains : 7.70 8.28 3/ 8.75 Mountain : 3/ 8.00 8.94 8.58 Pacific : 9.34 8.85 9.54 8.99 48 States : 9.09 8.73 9.04 8.91 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Regions consist of the following States: Northeast: CT, DE, MD, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT. Appalachian: KY, NC, TN, VA, WV. Southeast: AL, FL, GA, SC. Lake: MI, MN, WI. Cornbelt: IA, IL, IN, MO, OH. Delta: AR, LA, MS. Northern Plains: KS, NE, ND, SD. Southern Plains: OK, TX. Mountain: AZ, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, UT, WY. Pacific: CA, OR, WA. 48 States: All States, excluding AK and HI. 3/ Insufficient data. All Hired Workers: Wage Rates, by Economic Class of Farm By Region and 48 States 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : January 11-17, 2004 :--------------------------------------------------------------------- Region 2/: Gross Value Sales-$1,000's : :-----------------------------------------------------------: All : <50 : 50-99 : 100-249 : 250-499 : 500-999 : 1,000+ : Farms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : N. East : 9.51 7.66 8.59 10.13 9.65 10.29 9.70 Appal. : 6.97 6.82 8.96 8.17 9.69 9.78 9.16 S. East : 7.72 8.18 9.91 8.70 8.00 8.69 8.64 Lake : 8.32 8.86 9.61 11.53 9.22 12.56 10.68 Cornbelt : 9.66 7.64 9.21 10.18 11.52 10.72 10.46 Delta : 9.05 8.88 8.53 9.50 9.02 9.00 9.03 N. Plains : 8.97 9.03 8.56 9.65 10.84 9.92 9.75 S. Plains : 6.82 8.51 8.29 7.99 7.73 9.33 8.43 Mountain : 3/ 8.39 9.26 7.84 8.24 9.26 9.03 Pacific : 3/ 8.93 9.41 8.64 9.46 9.79 9.52 48 States : 8.76 8.61 9.22 9.11 9.53 9.73 9.38 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All Hired Workers: Wage Rates, by Economic Class of Farm By Region and 48 States 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : January 9-15, 2005 :--------------------------------------------------------------------- Region 2/: Gross Value Sales-$1,000's : :-----------------------------------------------------------: All : <50 : 50-99 : 100-249 : 250-499 : 500-999 : 1,000+ : Farms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : N. East : 10.48 9.36 6.87 8.80 11.28 11.29 10.07 Appal. : 3/ 8.20 7.84 10.08 8.88 9.88 9.33 S. East : 7.10 8.22 8.24 9.12 9.46 9.37 9.17 Lake : 7.96 7.21 9.44 9.53 10.00 11.58 10.61 Cornbelt : 8.75 8.55 10.08 10.04 9.85 10.55 10.31 Delta : 7.77 8.55 8.85 8.83 9.05 10.67 9.29 N. Plains : 8.04 8.11 9.80 8.61 10.35 11.41 9.82 S. Plains : 3/ 8.46 8.18 7.61 9.70 9.90 9.56 Mountain : 9.96 3/ 8.46 10.15 9.73 9.32 9.34 Pacific : 9.52 9.98 8.28 9.97 9.82 10.23 10.02 48 States : 9.29 9.05 8.47 9.56 9.75 10.21 9.79 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Regions consist of the following States: Northeast: CT, DE, MD, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT. Appalachian: KY, NC, TN, VA, WV. Southeast: AL, FL, GA, SC. Lake: MI, MN, WI. Cornbelt: IA, IL, IN, MO, OH. Delta: AR, LA, MS. Northern Plains: KS, NE, ND, SD. Southern Plains: OK, TX. Mountain: AZ, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, UT, WY. Pacific: CA, OR, WA. 48 States: All States, excluding AK and HI. 3/ Insufficient data. Field and Livestock Workers: Distribution By Type of Farm, 48 States 1/ 2/ 3/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Type of : January 11-17, : October 10-16, : January 9-15, Farm : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of Field and Livestock Workers : Field Crops : 9 16 11 Other Crops : 52 57 50 Livestock, Dairy, : & Poultry : 39 27 39 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hired Workers: Distribution by Economic Class of Farm, 48 States 1/ 3/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gross Value : January 11-17, : October 10-16, : January 9-15, Of Sales : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of Hired Workers : Less than $50,000 : 12 12 10 $50,000-$99,999 : 7 5 5 $100,000-$249,999 : 19 11 12 $250,000-$499,999 : 8 11 11 $500,000-$999,999 : 14 13 11 $1,000,000 and over : 40 48 51 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hired Workers: Distribution by Category, United States, 1/ 3/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : January 11-17, : October 10-16, : January 9-15, Category : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of Hired Workers Employed on Farms Hiring : 1 Worker : 11 10 13 2 Workers : 9 9 9 3-6 Workers : 19 16 18 7-10 Workers : 9 10 9 11-20 Workers : 9 12 13 21-50 Workers : 12 12 12 51 or more Workers : 31 31 26 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ 48 States, excluding AK and HI. 2/ Field and Livestock Workers combined. 3/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. Agricultural Services Crew leaders and custom crews provided 175,000 workers for the Nation's farms and ranches during the week of January 9-15, 2005. Service workers in California numbered 65,000 this January, down 29 percent from last year. Florida's number of service workers was 8,000, down 43 percent from last year. The average wages received by agricultural service workers in California and Florida were $9.50 per hour for each State. Comparable wages in January 2004 were $9.04 in California and $9.25 in Florida. Agricultural Service Workers: Number, Hours Worked, and Wage Rates, For California, Florida, and United States 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number of Workers : Hours : Wage : Working on Farms : Worked 2/ : Rates 2/ 3/ State:------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Jan : Oct : Jan : Jan : Oct : Jan : Jan : Oct : Jan : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 : 2004 : 2004 : 2005 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------- 1,000 ------- ------- Hours ------ Dollars per Hour : CA : 91.0 *124.0 65.0 37.5 *38.9 36.0 9.04 *9.02 9.50 FL : 14.0 3.0 8.0 38.5 40.0 40.0 9.25 10.20 9.50 : US : 185.0 *324.0 175.0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Data are for Agricultural Services performed on the farm by custom Service units such as crew leaders or custom crews. These statistics are Not included in the State-Regional tables. 2/ United States data not available. 3/ Benefits, such as housing and meals, are provided to some workers but The values are not included in the wage rates. Farm Labor Regions Region States Northeast I CT, ME, MA, NH, NY, RI, VT. Northeast II DE, MD, NJ, PA. Appalachian I NC, VA. Appalachian II KY, TN, WV. Southeast AL, GA, SC. Lake MI, MN, WI. Cornbelt I IL, IN, OH. Cornbelt II IA, MO. Delta AR, LA, MS. Northern Plains KS, NE, ND, SD. Southern Plains OK, TX. Mountain I ID, MT, WY. Mountain II CO, NV, UT. Mountain III AZ, NM. Pacific OR, WA. Farm Labor Definitions The following definitions are provided to assist in interpreting statistics published in quarterly Farm Labor reports. To ensure consistency in data collection, the questionnaires and instruction manual used by the interviewers provide more in-depth explanations of these terms. Farm or Ranch: Places that sell, or would normally sell, at least $1000 worth of agricultural products during the year. Agricultural Work: Work done on a farm or ranch in connection with the production of agricultural products, including nursery and greenhouse products and animal specialties such as fur farms or apiaries. Also included is work done off the farm to handle farm related business, such as trips to buy feed or deliver products to local market. Hired Worker: Anyone, other than an agricultural service worker, who was paid for at least one hour of agricultural work on a farm or ranch. Worker type is determined by what the employee was primarily hired to do, not necessarily what work was done during the survey week. Type of workers include: Field Workers: Employees engaged in planting, tending and harvesting crops including operation of farm machinery on crop farms. Livestock Workers: Employees tending livestock, milking cows or caring for poultry, including operation of farm machinery on livestock or poultry operations. Supervisors: Hired managers, range foremen, crew leaders, etc. Other Workers: Employees engaged in agricultural work not included in the other three categories. Bookkeepers and pilots are examples. Methods of Pay: Wage rates are calculated based on total wages and hours worked during the survey week. Perquisites: Benefits, such as cash bonuses, housing, or meals, provided to an employee in addition to pay are included in perquisites. Wage rates published in this release do not include the value of these benefits. Term of Employment: The length of time during the year the farm operator expects to employ those workers who were on the payroll during the survey week. Definitions - continued Agricultural Service: Service on a contract or fee basis such as veterinarian work, artificial insemination, sheep shearing, milk testing, etc., performed on the farm or ranch. Contract Labor: Contract workers are paid by a crew leader, contractor, buyer, processor, cooperative, or other person who has an oral or written agreement with a farmer/rancher. Pruning, thinning, weeding or harvesting of fruit, vegetable or berry crops are examples. A machine is not a part of the service activity provided by the contractor. Custom Work: Work performed by machines and labor hired as a unit. Hay baling, combining, corn or cotton picking, spraying, fertilizing, laser leveling are examples of custom work when the equipment is included in the service activity. Type of Farm (or Ranch): An operation is classified in the farm type which accounts for the largest portion of the total value of sales for its agricultural production. The three types of farms are: Field Crops: A farm producing wheat, rice, corn, soybeans, barley, dry beans, rye, sorghum, cotton, popcorn, tobacco, potatoes, sugar crops, hay, peanuts, hops, mint, or other such crops. Other Crops: A farm producing vegetables, melons, berry crops, grapes, tree nuts, citrus fruits, deciduous tree fruits, avocados, dates, figs, olives, nursery, or greenhouse crops. Livestock or Poultry: A farm producing cattle, hogs, sheep, goats, milk, chickens, eggs, turkeys, or animal specialties such as furs, fish, honey, etc. Gross Value of Sales: Gross value includes all income during a year from the sale of crops, livestock, dairy, poultry, or other related agricultural products, including the landlord'sshare. When commodities are placed under CCC loan, they are considered as sold. Reliability of Farm Labor Estimates Survey Procedures: These data were collected by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) during the last two weeks of January using sampling procedures to ensure every employer of agricultural workers had a chance of being selected. Two samples of farm operators are selected. First, NASS maintains a list of farms that hire farm workers. Farms on this list are classified by size and type. Those expected to employ large numbers of workers are selected with greater frequency than those hiring few or no workers. A second sample consists of segments of land scientifically selected from an area sampling frame. Each June, highly trained interviewers locate each selected land segment and identify every farm operating land within the sample segment's boundaries. The names of farms found in these area segments are matched against the NASS list of farms; those not found on the list are included in the labor survey sample to represent all farms. This methodology is known as multiple frame sampling, with an area sample used to measure the incompleteness of the list. Additionally, a list of agricultural service firms was sampled in California and Florida. The survey reference week was January 9-15, 2005. Reliability: Two types of errors, sampling and non-sampling, are always present in an estimate based on a sample survey. Both types affect the "accuracy" of the estimates. Sampling error occurs because a complete census is not taken. The sampling error measures the variation in estimates from the average of all possible samples. An estimate of 100 with a sampling error of 1 would mean that chances are 19 out of 20 that the estimates from all possible samples averaged together would be between 98 and 102; which is the survey estimate, plus or minus two times the sampling error. The sampling error expressed as a percent of the estimate is called the relative sampling error. The relative sampling error for number of hired workers at the U.S. level is normally less than 5 percent. The relative sampling error for the number of hired workers generally ranged between 5 and 22 percent at the regional level. The U.S. all hired farm worker wage rate had a relative sampling error of 1.6 percent. The relative sampling error was 1.6 percent for the combined field and livestock worker wage rate. Relative sampling errors for the all hired farm worker wage rate generally ranged between 4 and 19 percent at the regional levels. Relative sampling errors for wage rates published by type of farm and economic class of farm generally ranged between 3 and 35 percent at the regional level. Non-sampling errors can occur in a complete census as well as in sample surveys. They are caused by the inability to obtain correct information from each operation sampled, differences in interpreting questions or definitions, and mistakes in editing, coding or processing the data. Special efforts are taken at each step of the survey to minimize non-sampling errors. Revision Policy: Farm labor information is subject to revision the next time the information is published or the year after the original publication date. The basis for revision must be supported by additional data that directly affect the level of the estimate. Worker numbers and wage rates for January 2004 and October 2004 were subject to revision with this report. If any revisions were made to previous data, they are reprinted in this report for your information, and they are identified as such. Index Page U.S. Hired Workers on Farms, Wage Rates and Hours Worked3 Number of Workers and Average Hours Worked by Region and U.S. January 2005. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 October 2004. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 January 2004. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Wage Rates by Region and U.S. January 2005. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 October 2004. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 January 2004. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Agricultural Services: Workers, Average Hours Worked, and Wages January 2005. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 October 2004. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 January 2004. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Other Labor Estimates U.S. Distribution of Workers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Wage Rates by Type of Farm, by Region and 48 States . . . . 10 Wage Rates by Economic Class of Farm, by Region and 48 States. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Farm Labor Region Map. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Farm Labor Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Reliability of Farm Labor Estimates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Revision Policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 The next Farm Labor report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on May 20, 2005. 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