farm workers

'I’m so grateful to these people.' Latino workers in storm-hit Tennessee feel isolated but hopeful

7:00am October 06, 2024

There are barriers preventing many Latino farm workers in northeastern Tennessee from trying to get help, but the extended Latino community is bringing the help to them.

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Health & Safety

Bird flu cases among farm workers may be going undetected, a study suggests

2:34pm July 31, 2024

by Amy Maxmen

Dairy workers in Texas show signs of prior, uncounted bird flu infections in a new study. Without better surveillance, researchers warn that health officials could be caught off guard if the virus gets more contagious.

Bessy Hernandez, 73, sells fruits and vegetables at the Tropicana Flea Market produce stand. Hernandez's sales have dropped 40 percent in recent months as a result of the new Florida immigration law.

Sales are way down at a Florida flea market. A new immigration law could be to blame.

11:47am August 02, 2023

by Claudia Grisales

Florida's new strict immigration law threatens the state's economy and could hurt political ambitions for some GOP candidates. Vendors at a popular flea market are already seeing the impacts.

A Cambodian migrant farm worker stands outside the greenhouse where she works growing vegetables in Miryang, South Korea.

World News

As Workforce Ages, South Korea Increasingly Depends On Migrant Labor

1:32pm June 02, 2021

by Anthony Kuhn

South Korea's population is shrinking and aging. Foreign workers help fill shortages on farms and in factories, but it's very hard for them to become citizens. Some say that will soon have to change.

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Health & Safety

As California Expands Vaccination, Some Worry Farm Workers Will Lose Out

8:01am February 14, 2021

by Lulu Garcia-Navarro

Walter Newman, has been giving flu vaccines to California farm workers for decades. He talks to NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro about ensuring they get COVID-19 shots, even as the state runs low on doses.

These men, harvesting sweet potatoes in North Carolina, came to the U.S. on H-2A visas that are designated for seasonal agricultural workers. Such "guest workers" now account for about ten percent of U.S. farm workers.

Farm Workers Say The Government Is Trying To Cut Their Wages

4:02pm November 11, 2020

by Dan Charles

Farm worker advocates are accusing the U.S. Department of Agriculture of trying to cut the wages of farm workers who come to the U.S. on temporarily guest worker visas.

Syrian refugee Mohammad al-Saleh near Amman. He and his wife are farm laborers and were working in the fields when their tent caught fire in June, killing their four youngest children.

World News

'No Hope': A Deadly Tent Fire In Jordan Leaves Syrian Refugee Farm Workers In Despair

8:01am August 22, 2020

by Jane Arraf

The Saleh family lost four young children in a fire that broke out in their tent in June, when the parents were working in farm fields. Syrian refugees make up about 70% of Jordan's farm workers.

With the coronavirus spreading, farms try to keep workers like these in Greenfield, Calif. safe through physical distancing and other measures but advocates for laborers say protections are often not adequate.

Without Federal Protections, Farm Workers Risk Coronavirus Infection To Harvest Crops

7:00am August 08, 2020

by Victoria Knight

Labor advocates say the lack of enforceable federal standards to ward off the coronavirus allows farmers to prioritize the harvest over worker safety.

National

Washington Farmworkers Ask State Supreme Court For Overtime Pay

8:03am August 02, 2020

by Eilis O'Neill

Farmworkers in Washington state have gone to court to demand overtime pay. Coronavirus outbreaks in agricultural communities have focused new attention on working conditions and pay on farms.

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Farmworkers pick organic strawberries at Stehly Farms Organics in Valley Center, Calif., on March 25.

'Essential' Status Means Jobs For Farmworkers, But Greater Virus Risk

2:37pm March 27, 2020

by Dan Charles

Farmworkers are still working during the coronavirus epidemic. They're essential. But they're also at greater risk of infection.