This brief describes the household composition of migrant and seasonally laboring families who are eligible for MSHS. These families may or may not be enrolled in MSHS at the time that they were surveyed. Understanding the composition of migrant and seasonal farmworker families and households may identify some areas of focus for MSHS programs who…

Seasonal migration for work by poor rural families is a phenomenon that is escalating as the agrarian crisis mounts. Millions of families that migrate are compelled to take their children along, leaving school and a normal childhood behind. They spend several months every year at work sites such as brick kilns, salt pans, plantations and stone…

Children working in agriculture have always been a part of the rural culture and work ethos of the United States, especially on the Great Plains. Many teenagers still detassel corn or walk the beans in the summer months to earn spending money or money for college. But what about the children who work as migrant laborers in commercialized…

The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) monitors and encourages human rights compliance by signatories of the Helsinki Final Act of 1975. Language pertaining to migrant workers is found in all major CSCE documents, and the examination of migrant farmworker issues represents part of the Commission's ongoing review of U.S.…

This document highlights farmworkers' testimonies concerning farmworker health taken during three hearings. Six consistent themes emerged from farmworker accounts: (1) health and health care; (2) work conditions; (3) pesticide exposure; (4) housing; (5) women; and (6) children and youth. Farmworkers frequently mentioned injuries, eye problems, and…

California, the largest employer of seasonal labor in the United States, provides low-cost housing for migrant farmworkers in 15 counties during the harvest season from April through November. In 1987, the 21st year of data collection, 27 housing centers with 2,071 housing units served 2,461 families containing 12,174 individuals. About 53% of…