Training Farmworkers for Industrial Jobs: A Longitudinal Study

摘要

Long-term impacts on farmworkers enrolled in the Training and Technology (TAT) program during fiscal years 1978-1980 were assessed. Cosponsored by DOE and the US Department of Labor, which is responsible for providing farmworkers with alternatives to agricultural employment, the program enrolled 286 unemployed and/or economically disadvantaged farmworkers with 212 (74 percent) completing the six-month program. Graduates have been employed an average of 71 percent of the time since exit with an average hourly wage of $8,05 at the time of the survey (spring 1982). Eighty-three percent report no farmwork in the postprogram period. Findings indicate that program completion has a positive impact on farmworkers' posttraining employment experiences as measured by employment stability and wage increases. All subgroups examined experienced favorable outcomes although women and blacks reported lower employment and wage rates than whites and males. Graduates also reported improvement in quality of life, especially in housing, transportation, and financial stability. The study concludes that training for industrial occupations is an effective strategy for moving migrant and seasonal farmworkers out of the agricultural labor market. (ERA citation 08:012466)