To investigate the effect of technological change upon farm labor use, a stratified random sample of 696 farm workers from a population of 12,215 in Kern County, California, provided a basis for analysis. Some major findings were: (1) The high peak of seasonal labor use has been eliminated, (2) The need for migratory labor is decreasing, (3)…

A stratified random sample of 69 6 workers in 361 households in Kern County, California, was selected to investigate the changes in labor use resulting from farm mechanization, and to explore the trend towards a stable labor force. Some major findings were: (1) Mechanization of the cotton harvest has erased the high peak of seasonal farm labor,…

It is stated that the United States is experiencing in the agricultural sector two simultaneous surpluses which together are referred to as the "farm problem:" these are surpluses of products and labor. The primary reasons for the labor surplus are relatively rapid adoption of technological innovations, the approximation of a competitive…

These two articles, by Harold Wool and by H. Roy Kaplan, examine a study called "Work in America" which was written by a 10-member task force under the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. The authors then present data and discuss ways in which the quality of work in America could be improved. (EJT)

Farmers and their families continue to provide the largest proportion of agricultural labor, but hired farmworkers are increasingly supplying a greater part of farm employment. This trend is expected to continue in the eighties with the hired labor proportion gradually increasing. Better information, including crucial individual state data on…