Updated at 12:44 p.m., Wednesday, August 29, 2007
June farm workforce in Hawaii falls 10% from year ago
Advertiser Staff
Hawai'i's agricultural workforce totaled 6,300 in June, which was down 10 percent from a year ago, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Diversified agricultural workers accounted for 81 percent of all farm labor and at 5,100 workers, was down 5 percent from July 2006. Pineapple and sugarcane workers totaled 1,200 workers, which was down 27 percent from July 2006.The average wage paid to all hired workers during the July survey period was a record-high $12.87 per hour, which was 56 cents higher than July 2006. The combined average wage for field and livestock workers also reached a new record high at $10.89 per hour, which was up 51 cents from July 2006. Hawai'i farms employing from one to nine workers paid an average of $10.90 per hour for all hired workers, while the combined average wage for field and livestock workers was $10.28 an hour.
