Low commodities prices and high input costs had farmers tightening the purse strings in 2024. For farm workers, the opposite might be true. November’s farm labor survey showed an increase in wages. “Combined field and livestock worker wages were $18.12 nationally, up 3.2 percent from the 2023 release,” said American Farm Bureau Economist Samantha Ayoub. Wages are dependent on location. “There was actually a decrease in the Lake region, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, down two percent to $18.15, but then we have places like the Southeast, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina, with nearly ten percent increases.” The adverse effect wage, which comprises 96 percent of H2A workers, is based on the results of the survey and will be announced in December.
