Nov 29, 2021

October hired ag workers up 2%; wages rise 5% from 2020

There were 772,000 workers hired directly by farm operators on the Nation’s farms and ranches during the week of October 10-16, 2021, up 2% from the October 2020 reference week, according to data released Nov. 24, 2021, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Workers hired directly by farm operators numbered 797,000 during the week of July 11-17, 2021, up 3% from the July 2020 reference week. Farm operators paid their hired workers an average gross wage of $16.59 per hour during the October 2021 reference week, up 5% from the October 2020 reference week. Field workers received an average of $16.08 per hour, up 5%. Livestock workers earned $15.45 per hour, up 6%. The field and livestock worker combined gross wage rate, at $15.92 per hour, was up 5% from the 2020 reference week.

Hired laborers worked an average of 42.0 hours during the October 2021 reference week, down slightly from the hours worked during the October 2020 reference week. Farm operators paid their hired workers an average gross wage of $16.59 per hour during the July 2021 reference week, up 6% from the July 2020 reference week. Field workers received an average of $16.10 per hour, up 7%, while livestock workers earned $15.19 per hour, up 5% from a year earlier. The field and livestock worker combined gross wage rate, at $15.85 per hour, was up 7% from the July 2020 reference week.

Hired laborers worked an average of 41.0 hours during the July 2021 reference week, down 1% from the hours worked during the July 2020 reference week. The 2021 all hired worker annual average gross wage rate was $16.38 per hour, up 6% from the 2020 annual average gross wage rate. The 2021 field worker annual average gross wage rate was $15.77 per hour, up 7% from the 2020 annual average. The 2021 livestock worker annual average gross wage rate was $15.08 per hour. The 2021 annual average combined gross wage for field and livestock workers was $15.56, up 6% from the 2020 annual average of $14.62 per hour.

View the full report here.