US farms employ an average 1.5 million farm workers, including 1.1 million or three

fourths on crop farms. Due to seasonality and turnover, about 2.5 million individuals

are employed for wages on US farms sometime during a typical year. Two million or 80

percent of these hired farm workers were born in Mexico, including 1.7 million who

have settled in the US and 300,000 who have H-2A visas.

These settled Mexican-born farm workers are aging out of farm work. Some are

replaced by younger Mexican H-2A workers who are hired by 15,000 US agricultural

employers for an average six months. This means that 160,000 full-time equivalent H-

2A workers account a seventh of average employment on US crop farms. 

Three changes could benefit H-2A employers and H-2A workers: ABC ratings of

employers and workers, expediting the yearly return of experienced seasonal crews,

and favoring fewer and larger H-2A recruiters.