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Life As a Farmworker
Job Description: Attend to live farm, ranch, or aquacultural animals that may include cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses and other equines, poultry, finfish, shellfish, and bees. Attend to animals produced for animal products, such as meat, fur, skins, feathers, eggs, milk, and honey. Duties may include feeding, watering, herding, grazing, castrating, branding, de-beaking, weighing, catching, and loading animals. May maintain records on animals; examine animals to detect diseases and injuries; assist in birth deliveries; and administer medications, vaccinations, or insecticides as appropriate. May clean and maintain animal housing areas. Includes workers who shear wool from sheep, and collect eggs in hatcheries.
Life As a Farmworker: What Do They Do?
- Move equipment, poultry, or livestock from one location to another, manually or using trucks or carts.
- Examine animals to detect illness, injury, or disease, and to check physical characteristics, such as rate of weight gain.
- Segregate animals according to weight, age, color, and physical condition.
- Provide medical treatment, such as administering medications and vaccinations, or arrange for veterinarians to provide more extensive treatment.
- Trim and shear poultry beaks, toes, and wings using debeaking machines, heated hand shears, or hot wires.
- Drive trucks, tractors, and other equipment to distribute feed to animals.
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Farmworker Required Skills
Below is a list of the skills most Farmworkers say are important on the job.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Operation Monitoring: Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Operation and Control: Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Other Farmworker Job Titles
- Poultry Service Technician
- Field Aide
- Fence Post Driver
- Exercise Rider
- Ditch Cleaner
What Kind of Farmworker Job Opportunities Are There?
In 2016, there was an estimated number of 268,100 jobs in the United States for Farmworker. There is little to no growth in job opportunities for Farmworker. Due to new job openings and attrition, there will be an average of 38,600 job openings in this field each year.
The states with the most job growth for Farmworker are Georgia, Colorado, and Alaska. Watch out if you plan on working in South Carolina, Mississippi, or New Jersey. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Farmworker Salary
The salary for Farmworkers ranges between about $18,410 and $41,840 a year.
Farmworkers who work in Washington, Louisiana, or Iowa, make the highest salaries.
Below is a list of the median annual salaries for Farmworkers in different U.S. states.
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $27,590 |
Alaska | $34,790 |
Arizona | $31,930 |
Arkansas | $26,950 |
California | $31,500 |
Colorado | $31,550 |
Connecticut | $35,940 |
Delaware | $32,890 |
Florida | $30,340 |
Georgia | $31,500 |
Hawaii | $33,260 |
Idaho | $28,670 |
Illinois | $28,270 |
Indiana | $26,620 |
Iowa | $31,670 |
Kansas | $27,160 |
Kentucky | $27,110 |
Louisiana | $34,790 |
Maine | $29,110 |
Maryland | $29,950 |
Massachusetts | $31,990 |
Michigan | $26,140 |
Minnesota | $28,480 |
Mississippi | $35,870 |
Missouri | $28,630 |
Montana | $25,850 |
Nebraska | $30,540 |
Nevada | $29,950 |
New Hampshire | $32,620 |
New Jersey | $27,210 |
New Mexico | $25,010 |
New York | $33,010 |
North Carolina | $26,010 |
North Dakota | $28,020 |
Ohio | $30,290 |
Oklahoma | $25,080 |
Oregon | $26,180 |
Pennsylvania | $26,560 |
South Carolina | $29,960 |
South Dakota | $31,210 |
Tennessee | $26,660 |
Texas | $27,070 |
Utah | $26,750 |
Vermont | $34,370 |
Virginia | $28,020 |
Washington | $34,270 |
West Virginia | $29,810 |
Wisconsin | $28,650 |
Wyoming | $29,380 |
What Tools do Farmworkers Use?
Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Farmworkers may use on a daily basis:
- Web browser software
- Spreadsheet software
- BCL Landview Systems WinCrop
- Farm Works Software Trac
How do I Become a Farmworker?
What kind of Farmworker requirements are there?
How many years of work experience do I need?
Other Jobs You May be Interested In
Those interested in being a Farmworker may also be interested in:
Those who work as a Farmworker sometimes switch careers to one of these choices:
References:
More about our data sources and methodologies.