How Much Do Migrant Farm Workers Make Per Hour?

Migrant farm workers in the United States make a median of roughly $17 to $18 per hour, though what any individual worker actually earns depends heavily on the crop, the region, the pay method, and whether the job is filled through the H-2A guest-worker visa program. Federal data puts the median at $17.30 per hour for agricultural workers overall and about $18.20 for farmworkers and laborers in crop, nursery, and greenhouse operations, the category that covers most migrant harvest work.¹²

The lowest-paid 10 percent of agricultural workers earn under $30,830 a year, while the top 10 percent earn more than $48,970. Those annual figures assume year-round, full-time work, which many migrant workers do not have. Harvests are seasonal, workers move between jobs, and total earnings for the year often land well below the full-time median. Livestock work tends to pay more steadily because it runs year-round.

The H-2A Wage Floor

Workers hired through the H-2A temporary agricultural visa program are paid under a special wage floor called the Adverse Effect Wage Rate, or AEWR. It is calculated each year from USDA Farm Labor Survey data on average gross hourly earnings by region, and it exists to keep foreign labor from pulling down wages for domestic workers.³

As of January 2025, the national average AEWR used for computing surety bonds was $17.74 per hour. Range occupations such as sheepherding use a monthly rate instead, set at $2,058.31. State-by-state rates for other work are published on the Department of Labor’s Foreign Labor Application Gateway.

H-2A employers cannot simply pay the AEWR and stop there. They must pay whichever is highest of the AEWR, any applicable prevailing wage, the federal minimum wage, the state minimum wage, or a collective bargaining rate.³ In practice the AEWR is usually the highest number, so it sets the actual pay for most H-2A jobs.

Minimum Wage Rules for Farm Workers

For workers who are not on an H-2A visa, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour applies to most agricultural employers.⁴ There is an exception: farms that used no more than 500 “man-days” of agricultural labor in any calendar quarter of the prior year are exempt from the federal minimum wage. A man-day is any day on which a worker performs at least one hour of farm work.⁵ That exemption mostly covers smaller family operations without large seasonal crews.

Where a state minimum wage is higher than $7.25, the higher figure controls.⁴ Many states have raised their floors well above the federal rate, so the practical starting wage for farm workers in those states is often $13 to $16 per hour before the AEWR is even considered.

How Piece Rate Pay Works

A lot of farm work is paid by the unit rather than by the hour: a set amount per bucket, bin, or flat harvested. Piece rates reward speed, but they don’t override the minimum wage. Total weekly earnings divided by total hours worked must equal at least the applicable hourly minimum. If piece-rate earnings fall short because of weather, a poor crop, or a slower worker’s pace, the employer has to make up the difference.⁶

Employers are required to track both units produced and hours worked so that hourly earnings can be verified.⁷

A narrow exemption exists for certain hand-harvest piece-rate workers who commute daily from a permanent home and have worked in agriculture fewer than 13 weeks in the prior year. Workers who meet all of those conditions can be exempt from the minimum wage. The exemption disappears in any workweek where the worker also receives any other type of compensation.⁶

Overtime Pay

At the federal level, agricultural workers are exempt from overtime pay under Section 13(b)(12) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, meaning there is no federal requirement to pay time-and-a-half past 40 hours.⁸

Some states have added their own rules. California and Washington both phased in agricultural overtime, and by 2026 both require overtime after 40 hours per week, the standard that applies to most other industries. New York lowered its agricultural overtime threshold to 52 hours per week starting January 1, 2026, part of a continuing phase-down. Colorado has introduced rules requiring overtime after 40 hours per week and 12 hours per day. Hawaii and Minnesota require overtime past 48 hours. In each of these states the overtime premium is 1.5 times the regular rate.

These state rules change frequently. Workers should check the labor department in the state where they work to confirm the current threshold. In states with no agricultural overtime law of their own, the federal exemption still applies and no overtime premium is owed regardless of hours.

Housing, Meals, and Travel for H-2A Workers

Hourly pay is only part of what an H-2A worker receives. Federal regulations require H-2A employers to provide housing at no cost for the length of employment, along with either three meals a day or free access to cooking and kitchen facilities. Daily transportation between employer-provided housing and the worksite must also be free.⁹

Employers cannot charge H-2A workers for recruitment-related costs such as attorney fees, application costs, or recruiter payments. If the employer doesn’t advance travel costs upfront, it must reimburse reasonable inbound travel and daily subsistence once the worker completes 50 percent of the contract period, and it must pay for the return trip when the contract ends.¹⁰

What Can and Can’t Be Deducted From Pay

The Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act and its regulations at 29 CFR Part 500 limit deductions from a farm worker’s paycheck.¹¹ Payroll taxes and other standard withholdings are fine. Costs that primarily benefit the employer, such as tools, equipment, or safety gear, cannot be passed on if doing so would push effective hourly earnings below the minimum wage. If the employer charges for meals or lodging, the charge must reflect actual cost with no profit margin.¹⁰

All potential deductions must be disclosed at recruitment. Time spent traveling between fields during the workday counts as compensable work time and has to be paid.

If You Think You’re Being Underpaid

Workers can file a wage complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division by calling 1-866-487-9243 or through the agency’s website. There is no fee, and multilingual staff are available.¹²

The federal statute of limitations for a wage claim is two years from the violation, or three years if the violation was willful. The Wage and Hour Division generally recovers back wages only within that window, so filing promptly matters.¹³

Retaliation is prohibited. Under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, employers cannot fire, threaten, blacklist, or otherwise punish workers for filing a complaint or taking part in an investigation. If the Secretary of Labor finds that retaliation occurred, the agency can seek a court order for reinstatement plus back wages or damages.¹⁴

1
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Agricultural Workers
2
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 1 – National Employment and Wage Data From the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics Survey
3
U.S. Department of Labor. H-2A Adverse Effect Wage Rates
4
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Related Laws
5
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 12 – Agricultural Employment Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
6
eCFR. 29 CFR Part 780 Subpart D – Employment in Agriculture That Is Exempted From the Minimum Wage and Overtime Pay Requirements Under Section 13(a)(6)
7
eCFR. 29 CFR 500.80 – Payroll Records Required
8
eCFR. 29 CFR Part 780 Subpart E – Employment in Agriculture or Irrigation That Is Exempted From the Overtime Pay Requirements Under Section 13(b)(12)
9
eCFR. 20 CFR 655.122 – Contents of Job Offers
10
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 26 – Section H-2A of the Immigration and Nationality Act
11
eCFR. 29 CFR Part 500 Subpart C – Wages and Payroll Standards
12
U.S. Department of Labor. How to File a Complaint
13
U.S. Department of Labor. Frequently Asked Questions – Complaints and the Investigation Process
14
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 77C – Prohibiting Retaliation Under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act