Date: 11/21/11-6/29/12
Travel With Pam & Holiday Vacations
Date: 5/26/12-7/1/12
June Dairy Breakfast Schedule
Date: 5/26/12
Green Co. Dairy Breakfast
Date: 6/2/12
Rock Co Breakfast on the Farm
Farm Events: |
Farm News: Farm Labor Numbers IncreasecommentsPosted: 11.18.2011 It looks like the Midwest was one area of the country that hired more farm workers this year for the fall harvest. Nationwide there were 1,141,000 hired workers on the Nation's farms and ranches during
the week of October 9-15, 2011, down 1 percent from a year ago. Of these
hired workers, 828,000 were hired directly by farm operators. Agricultural
service employees on farms and ranches made up the remaining 313,000 workers.
The largest increases in the number of hired workers from last year occurred
in the Lake (Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin), Mountain I (Idaho, Montana,
and Wyoming), Southeast (Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina), Appalachian I
(North Carolina and Virginia), and Corn Belt II (Iowa and Missouri) regions.
In the Lake, Mountain I, and Corn Belt II regions, above normal temperatures
and windy conditions were more than enough to offset minor rain delays, and
field activities progressed rapidly. This resulted in a stronger demand for
hired workers. In spite of rain in the Southeast region, most fields remained
workable due to prolonged earlier dryness. Therefore, harvest and planting
activities kept worker demand higher. In the Appalachian I region, increased
activity on vegetable operations led to a greater need for hired workers.
Farm operators paid their hired workers an average wage of $11.15 per hour
during the October 2011 reference week, up 2 cents from a year earlier. Field
workers received an average of $10.54 per hour, up 5 cents from last October,
while livestock workers earned $10.67 per hour compared with $10.28 a year
earlier. The field and livestock worker combined wage rate, at $10.57 per
hour, was up 14 cents from last year. The number of hours worked averaged
41.6 for hired workers during the survey week, down fractionally from a year
ago.
The largest decreases in the number of hired workers from last year occurred
in California and in the Southern Plains (Oklahoma and Texas), Corn Belt I
(Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio), and Pacific (Oregon and Washington) regions.
In California and in the Pacific region, the wet spring and cooler than
normal growing season delayed crop development, lessening the need for hired
workers. Wetter conditions compared with last year's reference week kept the
demand for hired workers lower in the Corn Belt I region. In the Southern
Plains, prolonged drought conditions led to considerable culling of livestock
throughout the summer. Therefore, fewer hired workers were needed during the
October reference week.
Hired worker wage rates were generally above a year ago in most regions. The
largest increases occurred in the Northeast I (New England and New York),
Delta (Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi), Pacific, and Southern Plains
regions. In the Northeast I and Pacific regions, the higher wages were due to
strong demand from the nursery and greenhouse industry. The higher wages in
the Delta region were due to a lower proportion of part time workers. In the
Southern Plains region, there were more salaried workers working fewer hours
which pushed the average wage up.
The 2011 U.S. all hired worker annual average wage rate was $11.07 per hour,
up 1 percent from the 2010 annual average wage rate of $10.95 per hour. The
U.S. field worker annual average wage rate was $10.33 per hour, up 14 cents
from last year's annual average. The field and livestock combined annual
average wage rate at the U.S. level was $10.36, up 1 percent from last year's
annual average wage rate of $10.22.
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