Latinx Farmworkers in the Eastern United States (2^nd Ed., 2nd ed. 2020) Health, Safety, and Justice

This chapter provides a description of Latinx farmworkers in the eastern US, summarizing statistical sources (e.g., US Census of Agriculture, US Department of Commerce) and the general literature on their number, demographic characteristics, and living conditions (migrant housing).  Although remaining largely Latinx over the past three decades, many characteristics of the farmworker population have continued to change during the past decade.  For example, all farmworkers are contingent workers, but due to political forces and an increase in year-round agricultural production in some places, fewer are migrant workers and more are seasonal workers.  Among those who migrate, a growing number have temporary H-2A work visas, which limits the number accompanied by their partners and children.  More seasonal workers have children who are US citizens.  Understanding the current characteristics of the Latinx farmworker population is essential to improving occupational justice through workplace health and safety policy and improving access to health care.

 

3.       Occupational injuries and illnesses of farmworkers in the eastern US (Arcury, Quandt, Rhodes, Arnold)

This chapter provides an overview of the occupational injuries and illnesses experienced by Latinx farmworkers in the eastern US, and the processes (policy, regulations, organization of work) needed to reduce the rates of injuries and illnesses.  Some injuries and illnesses, including heat stress, musculoskeletal disorders, pesticide poisoning, and trauma, are common across agricultural work.  Heat stress may be exacerbated by climate change.  Other injuries and illness, such as infectious diseases, stress, and mental illness, are more specific to farmworkers due to crowded housing and separation from families.  Nicotine poisoning (green tobacco sickness) is specific to the eastern US, where tobacco is produced.   Understanding the current types and levels of occupational injury and illness of the Latinx farmworker population is essential to improving occupational justice through workplace health and safety policy and improving access to health care.

 

4.       Occupational health, safety, and context of dairy and livestock workers (Sexsmith)

Dairy operations require a daily work commitment throughout the year.  Many dairy farmers are aging, and finding American workers for this demanding work is difficult.  Many dairy farms have hired Latinx workers to meet their labor needs.  Similarly, many poultry and hog confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) (referred to as factory farms) require difficult labor that many American workers do not want.  This chapter details the work conditions encountered by these dairy, poultry, and livestock workers; the health and safety of these workers; and changes needed to ensure their occupational justice.

5.       Women farmworkers and women in farmworker families (Sandberg, Trejo)

Almost one-third of farmworkers are women.  Many women have partners who are farmworkers or live in families with farmworkers; these women may also work outside the home.  In addition to any paid employment, these women have the primary responsibility for domestic work and family care.  In the work place they often experience sexual harassment and abuse, and at home they may be subject to intimate partner violence.  At the same time, they and their family have limited financial resources (they are poor) and limited access to health care.  They experience high rates of mental illness.  This chapter summarizes current research on the physical and mental health of women farmworkers/women in farmworker families, and considers policy and public health interventions to improve these unjust conditions.

 

6.       The health of children in farmworker families (including child workers) (Quandt, Arnold)

Children in farmworker families are generally poor and are being raised in houses with limited access to community resources and support.  These children often accompany their parents to work from a young age due to a lack of affordable child care, and may participate in their parents' work.  These children experience crucial health effects including high rates of overweight and obesity, and exposure to neurocognitive toxic pesticides.  Children as young as 10 years of age can be legally employed to do farm work, and experience the same work exposures as adults.  This chapter documents these conditions for children and child workers and examines interventions and policy needed to improve health and justice for these children.

 

7.       Stress and resilience among Latinx farmworkers in the eastern US (Quandt, Furgurson)

Migrant and seasonal farmworkers experience substantial stress resulting from their difficult work, low income, separation from family, and poor housing.  Stress levels are reflected in high rates of mental illness and alcohol abuse.  At the same time, these Latinx farmworkers are extremely resilient in responding to their environment.  This chapter is centered on a stress/distress model.  It summarizes the current literature on the stress experienced by Latinx farmworkers as well as rates of mental distress (depression, anxiety) and substance abuse.  It also considers resilience to stress in this population and common coping mechanisms.

 

8.       Community-based participatory research (CBPR) and other community-engaged research with Latinx farmworker communities (Arcury, Quandt, Rhodes)

Latinx farmworkers are a vulnerable population that is poor, has low formal education, has limited English-language skills, experiences discrimination, and is at risk due to lack of documentation.  Farmworkers are often a "hidden" or "hard-to-reach" population for research; that is, no list of farmworkers (no sampling frame) exists, and farmworkers have a strong privacy concern as they are often undocumented and fear reprisals from their employers.  This chapter describes CBPR and community-engaged research approaches that include farmworkers, farmworker advocates, and farmworker service providers in the research process to ensure issues important to farmworkers are addressed in research projects, that their perspectives are incorporated into research designs, and that the results of research are used to improve their health, safety, and justice. 

 

9.       Approaches to improving Latinx farmworker health and safety (Rhodes)

This chapter focuses on multi-level strategies to promote health and safety and prevent disease among Latinx farmworkers. The framework for public health for action (Frieden, 2010), which moves from counseling and education, clinical interventions, protective interventions, contextual strategies, and socioeconomic approaches, are presented and used to organize and highlight various types of interventions and approaches. Next steps in improving Latinx farmworker health and safety also are described.

 

10.   Farm labor and the struggle for justice in the changing political environment (Wiggins)

This chapter focuses on the general strategies that farmworker groups in the eastern US use to advocate for justice for farmworkers including organizing, advocacy, and service.  It highlights national and state organizations that are involved with advocacy, paying particular attention to the role of research in working for farmworker justice.

 

11.   Conclusions – Research and policy agenda (Arcury, Quandt, Wiggins)

This final chapter draws on the conclusions from the other chapters to develop a research and policy agenda for improving the health and justice of Latinx farmworkers.