# Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse

US SOC code 45-2092. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/45-2092

Also called: Farmworker, Crop laborer, Field worker, Nursery worker, Greenhouse worker.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **265,500** US crop, nursery, and greenhouse farmworkers and laborers, with median pay of **$35,660** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **295,520**, in May 2019. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/9050occup.shtml) of **1,800,000** from 1900, not measured the same way as today's count. The current technology era in this work: Precision ag-robotics, since 2018.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to decline 2.4% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=45-2092&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **7.1%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1862
- Latest US employment: 265,500 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $35,660 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [9]
- Outlook: -2.4% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [19]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 85101)
  - Employment, 2020: 28,795. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [6]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income, the EXACT SUM of the cited cells for NOC 85101 + 85103 (this US occupation has no single NOC unit-group equivalent), combined as Harvesting, nursery and greenhouse labourers, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. A sum of cited cells, not an estimate. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$32,800. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [10]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 85101 Harvesting labourers, the dominant constituent of the combined Harvesting, nursery and greenhouse labourers (NOC 85101 + 85103), Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). This is the cited median of the dominant group, not a blend of the constituent medians. Statistics Canada Open Licence.

### All 28 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1900 | 1,800,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., IPUMS USA [1] |
| 1942 | 1,500,000 (estimate) | $480 (estimate) | Est., Wikipedia [2] |
| 1956 | 1,700,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [2] |
| 1970 | 900,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., USDA Economic Research Service [3] |
| 1990 | 700,000 (estimate) | $8,500 (estimate) | Est., Wikipedia (employment) [4]; Est., USDA Economic Research Service (pay) [8] |
| 2003 | 233,450 | $15,450 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 240,000 | $16,030 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 227,750 | $16,450 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 230,780 | $16,540 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 239,380 | $17,020 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 242,390 | $17,960 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 233,650 | $18,540 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 228,600 | $18,690 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 233,280 | $18,690 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 253,670 | $18,670 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 261,720 | $18,710 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 269,650 | $19,060 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 272,170 | $19,770 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 273,450 | $22,000 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 282,300 | $23,380 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 287,420 | $24,320 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 295,520 | $25,440 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 293,910 | $28,660 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 277,200 | $29,630 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 284,000 | $33,000 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 258,730 | $34,470 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 261,690 | $35,690 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 265,500 | $35,660 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (81)

### Employment series

1. [IPUMS USA — 1900 Census occupational data; "Farm laborers, wage workers" category (OCC code series 800-820); historical farm labor composition](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/9050occup.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
2. [Wikipedia — "Bracero Program" (Emergency Farm Labor Program, 1942; established in response to wartime hired-labor shortage; 4.6M contracts over 22 years)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bracero_program), Wikipedia (citing primary program records and State Department)
3. [USDA Economic Research Service — Farm Labor: Historical data on hired farm workers, 1950-2000 (ERS farm labor overview)](https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-economy/farm-labor), USDA Economic Research Service
4. [Wikipedia — "Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986" (SAW program: ~1.2M agricultural workers legalized; H-2A visa created; employer sanctions for hired farm labor)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_Reform_and_Control_Act), Wikipedia (citing USCIS records and Congressional Research Service)
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Wage series

7. [Wikipedia — "Bracero Program" (1942 contract wages: $0.30/hr standard contract wage = approximately $480/year at 1,600 hours seasonal; below prevailing domestic agricultural wages)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bracero_program), Wikipedia (citing program contract records and Calavita historical analysis)
8. [USDA Economic Research Service — Farm Labor: real wages for nonsupervisory crop workers, 1990-2024 trajectory (ERS farm labor overview); inflation adjustment via BLS CPI-U calculator](https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-economy/farm-labor), USDA Economic Research Service
9. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
10. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Tool eras

11. [Wikipedia — "Cotton gin" (Eli Whitney 1793; cotton production tripled; increased demand for enslaved labor; Southern plantation agriculture)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_gin), Wikipedia (citing primary historical records)
12. [Wikipedia — "Homestead Acts" (1862 Homestead Act; 270M acres distributed to 1.6M homesteaders; shaped family-farm vs. wage-labor agricultural structure)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Acts), Wikipedia (citing BLM and congressional records)
13. [Wikipedia — "Chinese Exclusion Act" (signed May 6, 1882; barred Chinese laborers; impact on Western agricultural labor market)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Exclusion_Act), Wikipedia (citing primary legislative and historical records)
14. [Wikipedia — "Bracero Program" (historical context: successive immigrant labor waves before 1942; Mexican workers as primary agricultural labor from 1920s)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bracero_program), Wikipedia (citing Calavita, Kitty, and primary program records)
15. [USDA Economic Research Service — Farm Labor: historical mechanization of cotton and tomato harvests; displacement of hired crop workers (ERS farm labor overview)](https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-economy/farm-labor), USDA Economic Research Service
16. [Wikipedia — "Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986" (SAW program: ~1.2M agricultural workers legalized; H-2A visa created; employer sanctions)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_Reform_and_Control_Act), Wikipedia (citing USCIS records and Congressional Research Service)
17. [BLS National Employment Matrix — 45-2092 Farmworkers and Laborers (2024-34 projections: -3.3%, 504,800 → 488,100; modest decline as robotics slowly penetrate)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=45-2092&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
18. [Wikipedia — "H-2A visa" (FY 2024: ~385,000 certified positions, ~315,500 visas issued; H-2A growth as growers substitute documented for undocumented labor)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-2A_visa), Wikipedia (citing USCIS and DOL annual statistics)

### Forecasts and exposure studies

19. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 45-2092 Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse (2025: 546.8 thousand; 2035: 533.6 thousand; -2.4%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=45-2092&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
20. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 45-2092.00, human-rated β 0.071)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

21. [Wikipedia — "Homestead Acts" (Homestead Act signed May 20, 1862; 270M acres to 1.6M homesteaders; created family-farm framework that coexisted with large-scale hired-labor agriculture)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Acts), Wikipedia (citing BLM and congressional records)
22. [Wikipedia — "Chinese Exclusion Act" (signed May 6, 1882 by President Chester Arthur; barred skilled and unskilled Chinese laborers; impact on Western US agricultural labor)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Exclusion_Act), Wikipedia (citing primary legislative records)
23. [Wikipedia — "Bracero Program" (August 4, 1942 Emergency Farm Labor Agreement; 4.6M contracts over 22 years; peak 445,000 in 1956; terminated December 31, 1964)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bracero_program), Wikipedia (citing Calavita, Kitty, and State Department program records)
24. [Wikipedia — "Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986" (SAW program: ~1.2M agricultural workers legalized; H-2A created; long-run undocumented share unchanged)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_Reform_and_Control_Act), Wikipedia (citing USCIS and Congressional Research Service)
25. [Wikipedia — "H-2A visa" (FY 2012: 65,345 visas; top states NC, WA, FL, GA, CA; no annual cap; Adverse Effect Wage Rate requirement)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-2A_visa), Wikipedia (citing DOL and USCIS statistics)
26. [USDA Economic Research Service — Farm Labor: precision ag-robotics deployment context (ERS farm labor overview); H-2A continued growth to 385,000 positions FY 2024 as robotics remain niche](https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-economy/farm-labor), USDA Economic Research Service
27. [BLS National Employment Matrix — 45-2092 Farmworkers (2024-34: -3.3% projected; modest decline as autonomous tractor and precision robotics begin penetrating but harvesting and specialty work remain hand-labor)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=45-2092&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Predecessors & successors

28. [USDA Economic Research Service — Farm Labor: 2020-22 NAWS data: 42% unauthorized, 19% authorized immigrants, 7% naturalized, 32% US-born (ERS farm labor overview)](https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-economy/farm-labor), USDA Economic Research Service
29. [Wikipedia — "H-2A visa" (H-2A program: no annual cap; Mexico \>90% of users; 315,500 visas issued FY 2024; top states NC, WA, FL, GA, CA)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-2A_visa), Wikipedia (citing DOL and USCIS statistics)

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3: Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse (45-2092.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/45-2092.00), accessed 2026-06-05
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Agricultural Workers (2024-2034 projections)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/farming-fishing-and-forestry/agricultural-workers.htm), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Eloundou et al. 2024: GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-06-05
- [iGrow News: Autonomous Weeding Robots Drew Most Precision Ag Investment in 2025](https://igrownews.com/autonomous-weeding-robots-drew-more-precision-ag-investment-than-any-other-category-in-2025/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [H-2A Program: Nearly 400,000 Positions Requested, Fresh Fruit Portal (2026)](https://www.freshfruitportal.com/news/2026/04/29/h-2a/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Taranis: Ag Assistant Launch (July 2024)](https://www.taranis.com/newsroom/ag-assistant/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Farmonaut: Precision Ag Drone Software 2025](https://farmonaut.com/precision-farming/best-drone-software-for-agriculture-top-drones-2025), accessed 2026-06-05
- [KSL: John Deere and Kubota Addressing Labor Shortages Through Autonomous AI](https://www.ksl.com/article/51224824/john-deere-and-kubota-are-addressing-industry-labor-shortages-through-autonomous-ai), accessed 2026-06-05

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.