Sp Sy 8 (5-03) Farm Labor National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released May 16, 2003, 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 13 Percent, Wage Rates Up 4 Percent From a Year Ago There were 938,000 hired workers on the Nation s farms and ranches the week of April 6-12, 2003, down 13 percent from a year ago. Of these hired workers, 781,000 workers were hired directly by farm operators. Agricultural service employees on farms and ranches made up the remaining 157,000 workers. Farm operators paid their hired workers an average wage of $9.16 per hour during the April 2003 reference week, up 33 cents from a year earlier. Field workers received an average of $8.40 per hour, up 34 cents from last April, while livestock workers earned $8.75 per hour compared with $8.43 a year earlier. The field and livestock worker combined wage rate, at $8.49 per hour, was up 34 cents from last year. The number of hours worked averaged 40.1 hours for hired workers during the survey week compared with 40.2 hours a year ago. The largest decreases in number of hired farm workers from a year ago were in California, the Pacific (Oregon and Washington), Southeast (Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina), Northeast II (Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania), Southern Plains (Oklahoma and Texas), Northern Plains (Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota) and Mountain I (Idaho, Montana and Wyoming) regions. In California, the Pacific, Southeast and Northeast II regions, below normal temperatures and above normal precipitation curtailed field activities, reducing the demand for hired workers. In the Southern Plains region, grazing land was abundantly available in most areas, decreasing the need to move cattle, and lessening the demand for livestock workers. Heavy snow in Nebraska and South Dakota brought fieldwork to a standstill until late in the week, which lessened the need for hired workers in the Northern Plains region. Rains in Idaho delayed planting and field preparation activities, lowering the demand for hired workers in the Mountain I region. The largest increases in number of hired farm workers over last year occurred in the Corn Belt I (Illinois, Indiana and Ohio) and Appalachian II (Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia) regions. In the Corn Belt I region, although scattered rains fell, much of the region was spared from the heavier rain and snow which plagued the surrounding areas. Therefore, fertilizer applications and field preparation activities were able to progress more rapidly than in the 2002 reference week, which increased the need for hired workers. In the Appalachian II region, a return to more normal weather patterns compared to the extremely wet spring of 2002 caused a higher demand for field workers. Nurseries and greenhouses were gearing up for the spring season, and cattle, dairy and equine operations had a constant need for hired workers. Hired farm worker wage rates were generally above a year ago in most regions. The largest increases occurred in the Corn Belt II (Iowa and Missouri), Northeast I (New England and New York), Northeast II and Southeast regions. The higher wages in the Corn Belt II region were mainly due to fewer seasonal workers on the payroll. Wages in the Northeast I and Northeast II regions were higher as a result of a larger percentage of nursery and greenhouse employees in the work force. Farm operations in the Northeast II region also had considerably fewer seasonal workers on the payroll. Wages in the Southeast region were higher as more salaried employees worked fewer hours, and the number of seasonal workers was down. Farm Labor: Employment and Wage Rates, United States, April 6-12, 2003, with Comparisons 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : April 7-13, : January 12-18, : April 6-12, Farm Employment : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 : Hired Workers : 890 *729 781 150 Days or More : 722 *614 619 149 Days or Less : 168 115 162 : Agricultural Services : Workers Working on Farms: 189 160 157 : Hired Farm & : Service Workers : 1,079 *889 938 : : : Hours per Week : Hours Worked : Hired : 40.2 *37.7 40.1 : : : Dollars per Hour : Wage Rate for : All Hired Workers 2/ 3/: 8.83 *9.34 9.16 : Field & Livestock : Combined : 8.15 8.50 8.49 Field : 8.06 *8.30 8.40 Livestock : 8.43 *8.90 8.75 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * 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, April 6-12, 2003 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 : 39 31 8 38.4 Northeast II : 30 23 7 39.3 : Appalachian I : 29 24 5 34.7 Appalachian II : 29 17 12 33.7 : Southeast : 27 21 6 37.0 FL : 53 42 11 38.3 : Lake : 56 36 20 37.0 : Cornbelt I : 50 38 12 36.9 Cornbelt II : 24 20 4 36.6 : Delta : 31 25 6 43.1 : Northern Plains : 28 22 6 41.1 : Southern Plains : 49 38 11 40.7 : Mountain I : 19 17 2 46.2 Mountain II : 22 16 6 39.1 Mountain III : 16 15 1 47.3 : Pacific : 52 43 9 40.3 CA : 220 185 35 43.1 : HI : 7 6 1 35.6 : US 3/ : 781 619 162 40.1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 13. 3/ Excludes AK. Hired Workers: Wage Rates for Type of Workers and All Hired Workers by Region and United States, April 6-12, 2003 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 : 9.76 8.55 9.27 10.24 Northeast II : 8.75 8.20 8.63 9.68 : Appalachian I : 8.18 8.37 8.24 8.77 Appalachian II : 7.32 7.24 7.28 7.64 : Southeast : 7.58 8.78 8.07 8.71 FL : 8.05 8.10 8.06 8.86 : Lake : 9.31 9.20 9.26 9.90 : Cornbelt I : 9.29 9.32 9.30 9.99 Cornbelt II : 9.94 10.00 9.97 10.71 : Delta : 7.20 7.54 7.25 7.63 : Northern Plains : 9.08 9.28 9.16 9.46 : Southern Plains : 7.62 7.98 7.75 8.31 : Mountain I : 7.63 7.68 7.66 7.93 Mountain II : 8.32 8.86 8.60 9.43 Mountain III : 7.10 8.24 7.52 7.93 : Pacific : 8.82 9.28 8.90 9.34 CA : 8.33 10.15 8.48 9.22 : HI 4/ : 9.58 10.30 9.63 11.50 : US 3/ : 8.40 8.75 8.49 9.16 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 13. 3/ Excludes AK. 4/ Insufficient data for livestock. Hired Workers: Number and Hours Worked by Region and United States, January 12-18, 2003 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 : 32 29 3 37.3 Northeast II : 23 19 4 37.2 : Appalachian I : 27 24 3 35.3 Appalachian II : 32 20 12 29.3 : Southeast : 24 22 2 35.6 FL : 70 56 14 37.2 : Lake : 45 40 5 31.7 : Cornbelt I : 23 21 2 33.5 Cornbelt II : 20 17 3 27.2 : Delta : 18 16 2 38.3 : Northern Plains : 23 22 1 37.8 : Southern Plains : 50 40 10 37.9 : Mountain I : 10 9 1 35.7 Mountain II : 20 18 2 39.7 Mountain III : 22 20 2 47.2 : Pacific : 48 40 8 37.7 CA : *235 *195 40 *40.8 : HI : 7 6 1 37.9 : US 3/ : *729 *614 115 *37.7 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 13. 3/ Excludes AK. Hired Workers: Wage Rates for Type of Worker and All Hired Workers by Region and United States, January 12-18, 2003 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 : 10.02 8.36 9.12 10.03 Northeast II : 9.16 8.34 8.83 9.83 : Appalachian I : 8.22 8.58 8.40 9.34 Appalachian II : 7.34 7.87 7.60 7.98 : Southeast : 7.50 8.96 8.12 8.87 FL : 7.80 8.30 7.87 8.81 : Lake : 10.51 9.44 9.65 10.54 : Cornbelt I : 9.68 8.64 9.01 9.72 Cornbelt II : 9.24 9.01 9.08 9.50 : Delta : 8.56 7.89 8.30 8.63 : Northern Plains : 9.18 9.43 9.37 10.00 : Southern Plains : 8.13 8.51 8.29 8.85 : Mountain I : 8.51 8.17 8.25 8.53 Mountain II : 9.15 8.73 8.85 9.66 Mountain III : 6.92 8.22 7.48 8.12 : Pacific : 8.63 9.93 8.87 9.71 CA : *8.22 10.10 8.46 *9.44 : HI 4/ : 9.31 9.36 11.04 : US 3/ : *8.30 *8.90 8.50 *9.34 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 13. 3/ Excludes AK. 4/ Insufficient data for livestock. Hired Workers: Number and Hours Worked by Region and United States, April 7-13, 2002 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 : 44 38 6 40.6 Northeast II : 45 35 10 35.7 : Appalachian I : 36 29 7 38.2 Appalachian II : 23 14 9 34.4 : Southeast : 44 34 10 44.1 FL : 52 46 6 40.6 : Lake : 55 42 13 36.2 : Cornbelt I : 43 31 12 34.0 Cornbelt II : 27 21 6 32.5 : Delta : 30 21 9 37.1 : Northern Plains : 37 29 8 46.0 : Southern Plains : 60 50 10 39.6 : Mountain I : 28 23 5 43.0 Mountain II : 25 20 5 37.7 Mountain III : 20 18 2 46.2 : Pacific : 69 56 13 38.4 CA : 245 209 36 43.7 : HI : 7 6 1 35.8 : US 3/ : 890 722 168 40.2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 13. 3/ Excludes AK. Hired Workers: Wage Rates for Type of Worker and All Hired Workers by Region and United States, April 7-13, 2002 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 : 8.35 8.56 8.42 9.14 Northeast II : 8.20 7.01 7.78 8.83 : Appalachian I : 7.42 8.60 7.86 8.45 Appalachian II : 6.89 7.87 7.31 7.63 : Southeast : 7.28 8.29 7.42 7.94 FL : 7.75 7.50 7.72 8.57 : Lake : 9.43 8.44 9.01 9.88 : Cornbelt I : 8.59 8.90 8.70 9.23 Cornbelt II : 7.84 9.82 8.89 9.34 : Delta : 7.05 7.06 7.05 7.50 : Northern Plains : 8.48 8.06 8.31 9.22 : Southern Plains : 6.92 7.78 7.31 7.95 : Mountain I : 7.55 7.92 7.80 8.00 Mountain II : 8.06 8.58 8.26 8.95 Mountain III : 7.51 8.35 7.71 8.21 : Pacific : 8.18 9.45 8.33 9.10 CA : 8.33 10.20 8.47 9.13 : HI 4/ : 9.40 9.43 11.14 : US 3/ : 8.06 8.43 8.15 8.83 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 2/ Region map on page 13. 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/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : April 7-13, 2002 : April 6-12, 2003 :--------------------------------------------------------------- Region 2/ : Field : Other :L'stk &: All : Field : Other :L'stk &: All : Crops : Crops :Poultry: Farms : Crops : Crops :Poultry: Farms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : Northeast : 8.63 8.44 7.72 8.11 3/ 9.25 8.52 8.99 Appalachian : 6.95 7.57 7.99 7.66 7.97 7.75 7.69 7.75 Southeast : 7.19 7.52 7.90 7.57 7.83 8.08 8.51 8.06 Lake : 8.42 9.60 8.33 9.01 9.84 8.97 9.42 9.26 Cornbelt : 8.32 8.55 9.04 8.77 9.50 9.75 9.85 9.49 Delta : 6.90 7.38 7.05 7.05 6.86 8.51 7.43 7.25 Northern Plains : 8.64 8.78 7.90 8.31 8.99 9.21 7.93 9.16 Southern Plains : 6.97 6.88 7.68 7.31 6.85 7.74 8.01 7.75 Mountain : 6.99 7.49 8.23 7.91 7.04 7.51 9.07 7.88 Pacific : 8.16 8.27 10.15 8.44 3/ 8.36 9.75 8.55 48 States : 7.75 8.13 8.35 8.15 8.10 8.38 8.81 8.49 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All Hired Workers: Wage Rates, by Economic Class of Farm by Region and 48 States 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : April 7-13, 2002 : April 6-12, 2003 Region :---------------------------------------------------------------------- 2/ : Gross Value Sales-$1,000's : : Gross Value Sales-$1,000's : :----------------------------: All :----------------------------: All : <50 :50-99 :100-249 :250+ :Farms: <50 :50-99 :100-249 : 250+ :Farms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Hour : N. East : 7.81 7.85 7.53 9.51 8.99 8.76 8.93 3/ 10.14 9.99 Appal. : 7.49 7.83 7.68 8.46 8.15 6.95 7.64 8.99 8.90 8.21 S. East : 3/ 7.56 8.47 8.36 8.27 9.30 3/ 8.50 8.85 8.81 Lake :11.49 9.97 7.97 9.73 9.88 10.52 3/ 8.12 10.29 9.90 Cornbelt : 9.59 7.66 8.43 9.83 9.27 9.14 8.51 8.30 10.98 10.20 Delta : 7.46 6.91 8.25 7.26 7.50 7.22 7.11 6.92 7.71 7.63 N. Plains: 6.99 8.92 7.23 9.79 9.22 7.86 8.23 3/ 9.28 9.46 S. Plains: 8.02 7.33 7.23 8.23 7.95 8.95 7.30 8.07 8.21 8.31 Mountain : 7.46 7.60 7.97 8.58 8.36 7.01 6.91 7.19 8.75 8.45 Pacific : 3/ 9.87 8.70 9.10 9.12 9.10 9.19 8.98 9.35 9.24 48 States: 8.68 8.33 8.12 9.01 8.81 8.48 8.98 8.82 9.41 9.14 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 : April 7-13, : January 12-18, : April 6-12, Farm : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of Field and Livestock Workers : Field Crops : 11 8 12 Other Crops : 57 54 58 Livestock, Dairy, : & Poultry : 32 38 30 : 100 100 100 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hired Workers: Distribution by Economic Class of Farm, 48 States 1/ 3/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gross Value : April 7-13, : January 12-18, : April 6-12, of Sales : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of Hired Workers : Less than $50,000 4/: 7 16 12 $50,000-$99,999 5/ : 10 29 26 $100,000-$249,999 : 13 9 10 $250,000 and over : 70 46 52 : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hired Workers: Distribution by Category, United States, 1/ 3/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : April 7-13, : January 12-18, : April 6-12, Category : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent of Hired Workers Employed on Farms Hiring : 1 Worker : 10 9 9 2 Workers : 8 10 9 3-6 Workers : 18 19 19 7-10 Workers : 11 10 10 At least 11 Workers : 53 52 53 : 100 100 100 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ 48 States, excluding AK and HI. 2/ Field and Livestock Workers combined. 3/ Excludes Agricultural Service Workers. 4/ Sales category changed from "Less than $40,000" to "Less than $50,000" beginning July 2002. 5/ Sales category changed from "$40,000 - $99,999" to "$50,000 - $99,999" beginning July 2002. Agricultural Services Crew leaders and custom crews provided 157,000 workers for the Nation's farms and ranches during the week of April 6-12, 2003. Service workers in California numbered 67,000 this April, down 27 percent from last year. Florida's number of service workers was 17,000, up 55 percent from last year. The average wages received by agricultural service workers in California and Florida were $8.15 and $9.40 per hour, respectively. Comparable wages in April 2002 were $8.59 in California and $9.00 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:------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Apr : Jan : Apr : Apr : Jan : Apr : Apr : Jan : Apr : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 : 2002 : 2003 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------- 1,000 ------- ------- Hours ------ Dollars per Hour : CA : 92.0 75.0 67.0 33.8 35.5 42.6 8.59 8.70 8.15 FL : 11.0 17.0 17.0 34.0 32.0 33.0 9.00 9.35 9.40 : US : 189.0 160.0 157.0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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's share. 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 April 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 April 6-12, 2003. 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 8 and 22 percent at the regional level. The U.S. all hired farm worker wage rate had a relative sampling error of 0.9 percent. The relative sampling error was 0.9 percent for the combined field and livestock worker wage rate. Relative sampling errors for the all hired farm worker wage rate generally ranged between 2 and 6 percent at the regional levels. Relative sampling errors for wage rates published by type of farm and economic class of farm ranged between 2 and 18 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 April 2002 and January 2003 were subject to revision with this report. Revisions were made and previous data are reprinted in this report for your information. Next Farm Labor Publication Date: The August 15th report will have information for the survey week of July 6-12, 2003. The report will include the number of All Hired Workers, Average Hours Worked by Hired Workers and the All Hired Worker Wage Rates at the regional and U.S. levels. The wage rate for field, livestock, and combined field and livestock workers will also be available at the regional and U.S. level. The number of Agricultural Service Workers and the corresponding wage rates will be published for California and Florida. Index Page U.S. Hired Workers on Farms, Wage Rates and Hours Worked . . . . . . . . . 3 Number of Workers and Average Hours Worked by Region and U.S. April 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 January 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 April 2002. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Wage Rates by Region and U.S. April 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 January 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 April 2002. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Agricultural Services: Workers, Average Hours Worked, and Wages April 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 January 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 April 2002. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Other Labor Estimates U.S. Distribution of Workers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Wage Rates by Type of Farm, by Region, State, 48 States . . . . . . .10 Wage Rates by Economic Class of Farm, by Region, State, 48 States . .10 Farm Labor Region Map. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Farm Labor Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Reliability of Farm Labor Estimates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Revision Policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Next Farm Labor Publication Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 The next "Farm Labor" report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on August 15, 2003. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C., 20250-9410, or call 202-720-5964 (voice or TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. ACCESS TO REPORTS!! For your convenience, there are several ways to obtain NASS reports, data products, and services: INTERNET ACCESS All NASS reports are available free of charge on the worldwide Internet. 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