Study: Undocumented Immigrants Are One-Fourth of All Farm Workers

A study by the Pew Research Center found that undocumented immigrants make up more than one-quarter of all workers in the farming, fishing and forestry industries. The study found that 26 percent of workers in these industries fit the study’s definition of “unauthorized immigrant.” In some states, the number of undocumented immigrants in these industries approached 40 percent. Researchers compiled data from the U.S. Census Bureau by subtracting the number of legal immigrant employees from the total number of foreign-born workers.

Definitions of Undocumented Immigrants

The study defined undocumented immigrants as a “all foreign-born non citizens residing in the country” who have not been granted permanent legal residence. The researchers stated that the “vast majority” of undocumented immigrants entered the U.S. either without any documentation, or entered with the proper visas and stayed after the visa’s expiration date. The study’s calculations include those immigrants who have received Temporary Protected Status due to President Obama’s recent executive orders.

Industry Breakdowns of Undocumented Immigrant Study

The research paper outlined the percentages of undocumented immigrants in specific industries. The data included both those who had jobs in their specific field, and those that were looking for jobs in that industry. The study revealed that 17 percent of the workers involved in cleaning and maintaining structures were undocumented immigrants. The data also showed that 14 percent of construction workers, 11 percent of food service workers, and nine percent of factory workers were also undocumented immigrants.

Undocumented Immigrants and Shifting Industries

Researchers also examined the percentage of undocumented immigrants in each industry. The study found that nearly half of all undocumented immigrant workers were either in the service industries (33 percent) or the construction and extraction industries (15 percent). While only four percent of the total undocumented immigrant work force took part in the farming, fishing and forestry industries, only one-half of one percent (0.5 percent) of native-born Americans worked in those fields.

Undocumented Immigrants in Texas

The study also included the distribution of undocumented immigrant labor by both state and industry. In Texas, the study found that 6.3 percent of the state’s labor force was made up of undocumented immigrants, second only to Nevada’s 7.8 percent. The data showed that one-fourth of the Texas construction labor force came from undocumented immigrants. Also, more than one-fifth (21 percent) of the state’s agriculture work force and 15 percent of the leisure and hospitality work force came from undocumented immigrant labor.

Source: Pew Research Center:

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