2022 SPECIALTY CROP AUTOMATION REPORT
The average H-2A contract length in 2020 was 24 weeks at an average of 39 hours per week of work, according to USDA. Based on the Average Effective Wager Rate (AEWR) and the number of H-2A jobs per state, the 2020 H-2A wage bill was estimated to be around $3.5 billion with an average contract value of $12,500. This puts the H-2A wage spend at around
10 percent of the total hired labor expense for all farms in the U.S. 46 Figure 20 provides an overview of the estimated H-2A wage bill per state. Florida, Washington and California are the top three states, contributing approximately 30 percent of the total H-2A wage bill, driven by the number of H-2A jobs and the AEWR per state.
FLORIDA, WASHINGTON AND CALIFORNIA CONTRIBUTE APPROXIMATELY 30% OF THE TOTAL H-2A WAGE BILL H-2A wage bill by U.S. state, 2020 [$ Million]
WA
NM
MT
MN
ME
SD
WI
OR
ID
VT NH MA CTRI
WY
NY
MI
IA
NE
IL IN
PA
NV
OH
NJ
UT
CO
KS
MO
MD
WV
DE
KY
NC VA
CA
TN
OK
AR
AZ
NM
SC
MS
AL GA
TX
LA
> 300 Million 200 Million – 300 Million 50 Million– 100 Million 10 Million – 50 Million 10 Million
FL
AK
HI
Source: USDA, Roland Berger
46 Total hired labor expense for all farms in the US was derived from the 2017 Census of Agriculture published by the USDA Figure 20: Overview of H-2A wage bill by state, U.S., 2020
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