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**FLORIDA**

**Farm Labor**

**November 21, 2006**

**FLORIDA**

The number of workers paid by farmers and agricultural services totaled
49,000 for the week of October 8 through 14. Farmers hired 44,000 in
October 2006 compared with 43,000 in July 2006 and 42,000 in October
2005. Agricultural services provided 5,000 paid workers, up 2,000 from
last quarter as well as those supplied a year ago.

Dry weather allowed vegetable harvesting to advance on schedule during
the survey week. However, another dry week did not help with the
harvesting of field crops, since this has been an extremely dry year for
field crops in the Panhandle area. The hardened soils made it difficult
for growers to dig in fields with some peanuts losing pods. In Jefferson
County, the pecan crop is light due to drought. Vegetable growers
marketed light supplies of sweet corn, cucumbers, okra, squash, and
tomatoes. Temperatures were slightly cooler than normal in
citrus-producing counties. Growers irrigated regularly due to lack of
precipitation. Grove maintenance included pre-harvest mowing,
herbiciding, and late supplemental sulfur spraying. Scouting for canker
and greening by growers as well as caretakers continued.

The October combined Farmers and Agricultural Services all hired worker
wage rate averaged \$9.47 per hour, 12 cents more than the \$9.35 paid
last year and 6 cents more than last quarter's \$9.41. Farmers paid an
average of \$9.42 per hour, 2 cents higher than the \$9.40 paid in July
2006 and 9 cents above the \$9.33 paid in October 2005. Agricultural
Services paid workers an average of \$9.90 per hour, 40 cents higher
than the \$9.50 paid last quarter and 25 cents above the \$9.65 paid a
year ago.

**UNITED STATES**

Hired Workers Down 5 Percent, Wage Rates Up 4 Percent From a Year Ago

There were 1,077,000 hired workers on the Nation's farms and ranches
during the week of October 8-14, 2006, down 5 percent from a year ago.
Of these hired workers, 797,000 workers were hired directly by farm
operators. Agricultural service employees on farms and ranches made up
the remaining 280,000 workers. Farm operators paid their hired workers
an average wage of \$9.95 per hour during the October 2006 reference
week, up 34 cents from a year earlier. Field workers received an average
of \$9.25 per hour, up 35 cents from last October, while livestock
workers earned \$9.41 per hour compared with \$9.15 a year earlier. The
field and livestock worker combined wage rate, at \$9.29 per hour, was
up 33 cents from last year. The number of hours worked averaged 41.6
hours for hired workers during the survey week, down 1 percent from a
year ago.

The largest decreases in the number of hired farm workers from last year
occurred in the Lake (Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin), Southern
Plains (Oklahoma and Texas), Southeast (Alabama, Georgia, and South
Carolina), and Mountain I (Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming) regions. Rain,
snow, and freezing temperatures in the Lake region slowed progress of
field activities considerably, decreasing the need for hired workers. In
the Southern Plains region, cool, wet weather in Texas caused most field
work to be delayed, lowering the demand for hired workers. Drought
conditions throughout most of the Southeast region curtailed hay growth
and postponed small grain seeding which led to a minimized demand for
field workers. In the Mountain I region, rain and wet fields slowed
progress of winter wheat seeding and lessened the need for hired
workers.

The largest increases in the number of hired farm workers from a year
ago were in the Pacific (Oregon and Washington), Northeast II (Delaware,
Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania), and Appalachian II (Kentucky,
Tennessee, and West Virginia) regions, and Florida. In the Pacific
region, ideal weather allowed winter wheat seeding and fall crop
harvests to progress rapidly, increasing the demand for hired workers.
Field activities in the Northeast II region were accelerating due to the
drier conditions compared with last year\'s very wet reference week.
Therefore, more hired workers were needed. In the Appalachian II region,
cotton and soybean harvests in Tennessee continued to make excellent
progress and remained ahead of normal, necessitating more field workers.
In Florida, drier conditions compared with the previous year\'s deluge
of tropical storms led to more normal progress of field activities and
caused stronger demand for hired workers.

Continues on page 4

+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **[                |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| Table]{.smallcaps} |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| 1 \-- Florida      |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| agricultural       |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| workers, number of |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| workers, wage**    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| **rates, and hours |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| worked, October    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| 8-14, 2006, with   |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| comparisons**      |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| Employer, Year,    | H    |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| and                | ired |      |      |      |     |    |       |
|                    | Wor  |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| survey week        | kers |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    | Nu   |      |      | H    | Wa  |    |       |
|                    | mber |      |      | ours | ges |    |       |
|                    | of   |      |      |      | P   |    |       |
|                    | wor  |      |      | Wo   | aid |    |       |
|                    | kers |      |      | rked | by  |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | T   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      | Per  | ype |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | of  |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      | Week | W   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | ork |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    | All  | Expe |      |      | All | F  | Live  |
|                    |      | cted |      |      |     | ie | stock |
|                    |      | to   |      |      |     | ld |       |
|                    |      | work |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    |      | 150  | 149  |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      | days | days |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      | or   | or   |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      | more | less |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **[Hired by        | *Th  |      |      | *Ho  | *D  |    |       |
| Fa                 | ousa |      |      | urs* | oll |    |       |
| rmers]{.smallcaps} | nds* |      |      |      | ars |    |       |
| *^1/^***           |      |      |      |      | Per |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | H   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | our |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | ^2  |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | /^* |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2006**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **October 8 -    | **44 | **40 | **4  | **41 | **  | ** | **9   |
| > 14**             | .0** | .0** | .0** | .1** | 9.4 | 8. | .10** |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 2** | 50 |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     | ** |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **July 9 - 15**  | **43 | **38 | **5  | **41 | **  | ** | **9   |
|                    | .0** | .0** | .0** | .0** | 9.4 | 8. | .10** |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 0** | 39 |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     | ** |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > April 9 - 15     | 52.0 | 44.0 | 8.0  | 40.4 | 9   | 8. | 8.50  |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .19 | 37 |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > January 8 -- 14  | 49.0 | 38.0 | 11.0 | 39.2 | 9   | 8. | 8.80  |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .55 | 80 |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2005**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **October 9 -    | **42 | **37 | **5  | **39 | **  | ** | **8   |
| > 15**             | .0** | .0** | .0** | .4** | 9.3 | 8. | .45** |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 3** | 60 |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     | ** |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > July 10 - 16     | 41.0 | 39.0 | 2.0  | 41.3 | 9   | 8. | 9.15  |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .70 | 75 |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > April 10 - 16    | 49.0 | 41.0 | 8.0  | 38.7 | 9   | 8. | 9.90  |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .31 | 20 |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > January 9 - 15   | 48.0 | 37.0 | 11.0 | 38.7 | 9   | 8. | 8.60  |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .52 | 50 |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2004**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > October 9 - 15   | 52.0 | 44.0 | 8.0  | 39.4 | 9   | 7. | 9.10  |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .14 | 95 |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **[Hired           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| by]{.smallcaps}**  |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| **[Agricultural    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| Servi              |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| ces]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2006**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **October 8-     | **5  |      |      | **42 | **  |    |       |
| > 14**             | .0** |      |      | .0** | 9.9 |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 0** |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **July 9 - 15**  | **3  |      |      | **45 | **  |    |       |
|                    | .0** |      |      | .0** | 9.5 |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 0** |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > April 9 - 15     | 8.0  |      |      | 40.0 | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .60 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > January 8 - 14   | 9.0  |      |      | 40.0 | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .20 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2005**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **October 9 -    | **3  |      |      | **41 | **  |    |       |
| > 15**             | .0** |      |      | .0** | 9.6 |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 5** |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > July 10 -16      | 2.0  |      |      | 45.0 | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .90 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > April 10 - 16    | 10.0 |      |      | 39.0 | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .10 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > January 9 - 15   | 8.0  |      |      | 40.0 | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .50 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2004**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > October 9 - 15   | 3.0  |      |      | 40.0 | 10  |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .20 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **[Hired by Both   |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| Farmers            |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| &]{.smallcaps}**   |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| **[Agricultural    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| Servi              |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| ces]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2006**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **October 8 -    | **49 |      |      |      | **  |    |       |
| > 14**             | .0** |      |      |      | 9.4 |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 7** |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **July 9 - 15**  | **46 |      |      |      | **  |    |       |
|                    | .0** |      |      |      | 9.4 |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 1** |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > April 9 - 15     | 60.0 |      |      |      | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .24 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > January 8 - 14   | 58.0 |      |      |      | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .49 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2005**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > **October 9 -    | **45 |      |      |      | **  |    |       |
| > 15**             | .0** |      |      |      | 9.3 |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | 5** |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > July 10 -16      | 43.0 |      |      |      | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .71 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > April 10 - 16    | 59.0 |      |      |      | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .27 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > January 9 - 15   | 56.0 |      |      |      | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .52 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| **2004**           |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| > October 10 - 16  | 55.0 |      |      |      | 9   |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      | .20 |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+
| ^1/^ Excludes      |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| Agricultural       |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| Services workers.  |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
|                    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| ^2/^ Benefits,     |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| such as housing    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| and meals, are     |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| provided some      |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| workers but the    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| values are not     |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| included in the    |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
| wage rates.        |      |      |      |      |     |    |       |
+--------------------+------+------+------+------+-----+----+-------+

+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[Ta            |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| ble]{.smallcaps} |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| 2 \-- Number of  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| workers hired by |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| farmers, wage    |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| rates, and hours |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| worked,**        |      |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| **Selected       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| States, October  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| 8--14, 2006,     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| with             |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| co               |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| mparisons ^1/^** |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| Item             | Flo  | Ca   | Texas | Arizona | H     | United |
|                  | rida | lifo | &     | &       | awaii |        |
|                  |      | rnia |       |         |       | State  |
|                  |      |      | Okl   | New     |       | s ^2/^ |
|                  |      |      | ahoma | Mexico  |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  | *Th  |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | ousa |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | nds* |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[All hired     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| worker           |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| s]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 44   | 183  | 49    | 21      | 7     | 797    |
| > 14, 2006**     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 43   | \    | 53    | 25      | 7     | \*876  |
| > 2006           |      | *191 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 42   | 183  | 64    | 25      | 7     | 842    |
| > 15, 2005       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[Expected to   |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| wor              |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| k]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **150 days or  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| > more**         |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 40   | 149  | 36    | 20      | 6     | 592    |
| > 14, 2006**     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 38   | 160  | 38    | 23      | 6     | 630    |
| > 2006           |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 37   | 146  | 51    | 20      | 6     | 621    |
| > 15, 2005       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **149 days or  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| > less**         |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 4    | 34   | 13    | 1       | 1     | 205    |
| > 14, 2006**     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 5    | \*31 | 15    | 2       | 1     | \*246  |
| > 2006           |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 5    | 37   | 13    | 5       | 1     | 221    |
| > 15, 2005       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  | *Dol |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | lars |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | per  |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | hour |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | ^    |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | 3/^* |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[All hired     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| worker wage      |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| rat              |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| e]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 9.42 | 1    | 9.60  | 8.50    | 12.47 | 9.95   |
| > 14, 2006**     |      | 0.10 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 9.40 | \*   | 9.38  | 8.70    | 12.31 | \*9.72 |
| > 2006           |      | 9.89 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 9.33 | 1    | 8.38  | 8.28    | 11.73 | 9.61   |
| > 15, 2005       |      | 0.13 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[Wages by type |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| of               |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| worke            |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| r]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **Field &      |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| > Livestock**    |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 8.58 | 9.31 | 9.02  | 8.05    | 10.69 | 9.29   |
| > 14, 2006**     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 8.48 | \*   | 8.75  | 8.12    | 10.38 | \*9.07 |
| > 2006           |      | 9.09 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 8.58 | 9.37 | 7.68  | 7.67    | 10.18 | 8.96   |
| > 15, 2005       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **Field**      |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 8.50 | 9.13 | 8.14  | 7.56    | 10.61 | 9.25   |
| > 14, 2006**     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 8.39 | \*   | 8.53  | 7.55    | 10.26 | \*8.93 |
| > 2006           |      | 8.92 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 8.60 | 9.21 | 7.60  | 7.27    | 10.10 | 8.90   |
| > 15, 2005       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **Livestock**  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 9.10 | 1    | 10.09 | 8.86    | ^4/^  | 9.41   |
| > 14, 2006**     |      | 0.40 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 9.10 | \*1  | 9.12  | 9.10    | ^4/^  | \*9.49 |
| > 2006           |      | 0.24 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 8.45 | 1    | 7.84  | 8.87    | ^4/^  | 9.15   |
| > 15, 2005       |      | 0.45 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                  | *Ave |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | rage |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | h    |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | ours |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | per  |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | w    |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  | eek* |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[              |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| Hours worked by  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| all hired worker |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| s]{.smallcaps}** |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > **October 8 -  | 41.1 | 44.6 | 39.7  | 45.1    | 37.9  | 41.6   |
| > 14, 2006**     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > July 9 -- 15,  | 41.0 | \*   | 37.6  | 47.2    | 39.1  | \*41.0 |
| > 2006           |      | 46.4 |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > October 9 -    | 39.4 | 44.4 | 39.1  | 44.8    | 39.7  | 42.0   |
| > 15, 2005       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| ^1/^ Excludes    |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| Agricultural     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| Service workers. |      |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| ^2/^ United      |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| States exclude   |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| Alaska.          |      |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| ^3/^ Benefits,   |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| such as housing  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| and meals, are   |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| provided some    |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| workers but the  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| values are not   |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| included in the  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| wage rates.      |      |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| ^4/^             |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| Insufficient     |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| data for         |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| livestock.       |      |      |       |         |       |        |
|                  |      |      |       |         |       |        |
| **\***Revised.   |      |      |       |         |       |        |
+------------------+------+------+-------+---------+-------+--------+

Continued from page 1

Hired farm worker wage rates were generally above a year ago in most
regions. The largest increases occurred in the Pacific, Southern Plains,
Mountain II (Colorado, Nevada, and Utah), Mountain I, and Delta
(Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi) regions. In the Pacific and
Mountain II regions, the higher wages were due to a larger percentage of
salaried workers putting in fewer hours, which pushed the average hourly
wage higher. The higher wages in the Southern Plains region were due to
the wet conditions which kept hours worked down and drove the wage rates
up. In the Mountain I region, the higher wages were due to a lower
proportion of part time workers. The higher wages in the Delta region
were due to a greater percentage of nursery and greenhouse workers in
the work force.

**[Annual Wages, Hired Workers And Hours]{.smallcaps}**

The 2006 U.S. hired worker annual average rage rate was \$9.87, up
nearly 4 percent from the 2005 annual wage rate of \$9.51. The U.S.
field worker annual average wage rate was \$9.06, up 36 cents from last
year's annual average. The field and livestock worker combined annual
average rate at the U.S. level was \$9.15, up nearly 4 percent from last
year's annual wage of \$8.84.

The 2006 hired worker annual wage rate for Florida average \$9.38, down
8 cents from the 2005 annual average of \$9.46. The annual average wage
rate for Florida field workers was \$8.51, up one cent from last year's
annual average. The field and livestock worker combined annual average
wage rate for Florida was \$8.56, equal to last year's annual average
wage rate.

+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| **[Table               |        |       |         |       |        |
| 3                      |        |       |         |       |        |
| \--]{.smallcaps}Annual |        |       |         |       |        |
| average wage rates,    |        |       |         |       |        |
| number of hired        |        |       |         |       |        |
| workers,**             |        |       |         |       |        |
|                        |        |       |         |       |        |
| **and hours worked,    |        |       |         |       |        |
| 2005 and               |        |       |         |       |        |
| 2006[^                 |        |       |         |       |        |
| 1/\ 2/^]{.smallcaps}** |        |       |         |       |        |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| State and Region       | Wages  |       |         | N     | Hours  |
|                        |        |       |         | umber |        |
|                        | by     |       |         | of    | Worked |
|                        | Type   |       |         | Hired | by     |
|                        | of     |       |         |       |        |
|                        | Worker |       |         | Wo    | Hired  |
|                        |        |       |         | rkers |        |
|                        |        |       |         |       | W      |
|                        |        |       |         |       | orkers |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
|                        | All    | Field | Field & |       |        |
|                        | Hired  |       |         |       |        |
|                        | ^3/^   |       | Li      |       |        |
|                        |        |       | vestock |       |        |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| 2006                   |        |       |         |       |        |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Florida              | 9.38   | 8.51  | 8.56    | 47.0  | 40.4   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Texas & Oklahoma     | 9.33   | 8.17  | 8.66    | 50.0  | 38.9   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Arizona & New Mexico | 8.91   | 7.78  | 8.27    | 21.0  | 46.9   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > California           | 10.09  | 9.00  | 9.20    | 159.0 | 44.2   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Hawaii               | 12.18  | 10.20 | 10.32   | 7.0   | 37.8   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > United States ^4/^   | 9.87   | 9.06  | 9.15    | 751.8 | 40.5   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| 2005                   |        |       |         |       |        |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Florida              | 9.46   | 8.50  | 8.56    | 45.0  | 39.5   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Texas & Oklahoma     | 9.08   | 7.92  | 8.32    | 58.0  | 38.7   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Arizona & New Mexico | 8.61   | 7.66  | 8.01    | 21.5  | 45.1   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > California           | 9.77   | 8.81  | 9.01    | 178.5 | 44.0   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > Hawaii               | 11.59  | 9.93  | 10.00   | 7.0   | 38.9   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| > United States ^4/^   | 9.51   | 8.70  | 8.84    | 780.0 | 40.1   |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+
| ^1/^ Excludes          |        |       |         |       |        |
| Agricultural Service   |        |       |         |       |        |
| Workers.               |        |       |         |       |        |
|                        |        |       |         |       |        |
| ^2/^ Annual rates are  |        |       |         |       |        |
| averages of the        |        |       |         |       |        |
| published wage rates   |        |       |         |       |        |
| for each survey week   |        |       |         |       |        |
| weighted by the number |        |       |         |       |        |
| of hours worked during |        |       |         |       |        |
| the week. The annual   |        |       |         |       |        |
| average for all        |        |       |         |       |        |
| States, Regions, and   |        |       |         |       |        |
| the U.S. is based on   |        |       |         |       |        |
| data collected for     |        |       |         |       |        |
| January, April, July,  |        |       |         |       |        |
| and October.           |        |       |         |       |        |
|                        |        |       |         |       |        |
| ^3/^ Benefits, such as |        |       |         |       |        |
| housing and meals, are |        |       |         |       |        |
| provided some workers  |        |       |         |       |        |
| but the values are not |        |       |         |       |        |
| included in the wage   |        |       |         |       |        |
| rates.                 |        |       |         |       |        |
|                        |        |       |         |       |        |
| ^4/^ Excludes AK.      |        |       |         |       |        |
+------------------------+--------+-------+---------+-------+--------+