Thread: Farm work, American's don't want to do it?

Originally Posted by marbro

Its all about money. Right now a person could do better on welfare than work low wages on a farm.

8$ a hour is above Minimum Wage

Originally Posted by marbro

Its all about money. Right now a person could do better on welfare than work low wages on a farm.

But, the high school kids who have been detasseling corn for $10 an hour don't get welfare. Unfortunately, the government doesn't want them working.

Originally Posted by PatrickT

But, the high school kids who have been detasseling corn for $10 an hour don't get welfare. Unfortunately, the government doesn't want them working.

10 dollars an hour is pretty (*)(*)(*)(*) good!

Originally Posted by Brock

I do not understand a argument I have seen in politics, a lot.

Americans are un-willing to work in the fields?

I do not understand that, I do it, my parents did it, their parents did it, etc etc.

Where does the idea that Americans do not want to do this job come from? The only reason I stopped this year was because migrant workers came and the farmer I was working for, could not hire me at the same time, because their contract did not allow it.

I do not think immigrants are wrong, they're a part of the world, I think illegal immigrants are wrong, because it is ILLEGAL. Breaking the law, is breaking the law, but I don't understand the argument that Americans are too lazy, cause I do it, and a lot of people I know do it or did it.

You do it? Do you really pick produce 10 hours a day as fast as you can?

Originally Posted by Margot

You do it? Do you really pick produce 10 hours a day as fast as you can?

I do during the summer. Why you ask?

I drag 340lb stacks of product off conveyors and onto trucks and warehouses for 8+ hours a day. Big whup. Of coarse, I am union and make $25 per and full benefits, 401K and pension. It doesn't matter what the job is, if you do it right it's going to be hard and hopefully satisfying. Oh, and in answer to your next post, we are on average twice as profitable and efficient as the non-union companies that do the same thing.

Originally Posted by clarkatticus

I drag 340lb stacks of product off conveyors and onto trucks and warehouses for 8+ hours a day. Big whup. Of coarse, I am union and make $25 per and full benefits, 401K and pension. It doesn't matter what the job is, if you do it right it's going to be hard and hopefully satisfying. Oh, and in answer to your next post, we are on average twice as profitable and efficient as the non-union companies that do the same thing.

Congratulations. I still don't understand why Americans are said not to want to work on farms. It is tough work, but it is good work, and decent pay.

Originally Posted by Brock

I have family members who own thousands of acres, their not corporations, their all owned by the family.

In America, huge agricultural corporations mostly took over. They do not pay their common employees very much, nor treat them well, and prefer to hire Mexicans who do not speak english, hence the reason why Americans do not do these jobs.

It all started in 1934 with the Farmer's revolt, which drove many former farming families into the cities:
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/vi...2%20history%22

Part of this was intentional. The U.S. government wanted to increase productivity, so put taxes on family farmers to drive them out of business so the corporations could take over. Farming output might have increased, but countless decent farming jobs were also turned into bad jobs.

77 percent of all agricultural workers in the United States are foreign-born because agricultural workers have seasonal work schedules and they are expected to work longer hours. Asian and European first-generation immigrants used to be employed in the agricultural sector but native-born Americans are generally better off than their ancestors who had no choice but to take up low-paying farm jobs. Nearly 22,000 agricultural workers are flown into the UK from Romania and Bulgaria each year under the Home Office’s Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme (SAWS) because farmers cannot find native-born Britons who are willing to do the job even among the unemployed and the American growers have been pressing Congress to relieve the labour shortage by setting up a similar scheme to import cheap labour from Mexico.

I dont think all americans would do farm work, I do think theres americans that would, that wont because theres no point in working for what they pay.