2019 Agricultural Labor

Base and Overtime

Hours Cognitive Testing

Report

Heather Ridolfo and Kathy Ott

United States

Department of

Agricultural

National

Agricultural

Statistics

Service

Research and

Development Division

Washington, DC 20250

RDD Research Report

Number RDD-21-03

April 2021

The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the author and should not be construed to represent any

official USDA or U.S. Government determination or policy.
ii

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In 2017, the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) was requested to enhance its 

Agricultural Labor Survey to provide a more reflective gross and base wage rate (see Ridolfo et 

al. 2020 for more information). To produce an accurate hourly wage rate, changes were also 

proposed to the question that asked about total hours worked by each worker group. In addition 

to these changes, a new instruction was proposed to exclude H-2A workers, that is temporary 

nonimmigrant foreign workers hired to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or 

seasonal nature. Ten cognitive interviews were conducted across two rounds to evaluate these 

proposed changes.

Results showed that the addition of base and overtime hours did not cause undue burden on the 

response process. Respondents could understand the intent of the questions and had no difficulty 

reporting this information. 

The instruction to exclude H-2A workers when reporting agricultural workers was adhered to by 

respondents and although some respondents questioned why these types of workers were being 

excluded, the exclusion of these workers made it easier for respondents to report the agricultural 

workers on their payroll. 

Other issues were uncovered during testing. Similar to other cognitive interview project findings, 

respondents continued to have significant difficulty assigning the appropriate worker codes to 

their workers. Respondents often felt they could assign multiple worker codes to their workers 

and their workers were hired to perform more than one job. Also, respondents often did not see a 

distinction between some of the worker codes provided. 

Another issue found during testing was that respondents did not always follow instructions for 

reporting wages. Respondents, in general, were confused about what constituted a bonus and 

interpreted and reported bonus wages inconsistently. Respondents, particularly those who paid 

piece rate, also did not report base and bonus wages the way we intended them to. In the first 

round of testing, respondents, who paid their workers piece rate, were confused by the definition 

of base wages. This issue was resolved in Round 2. However, respondents in the second round 

disagreed with the revised instructions to split piece rate wages between base and bonus wages 

as they did not view any portion of those wages to be a bonus. Finally, respondents who paid 

commissions were unsure how to report this on the questionnaire and did so inconsistently. 
iii

RECOMMENDATIONS

1) If base and overtime hours are needed to calculate the wage rate, add them to the 

questionnaire as worded and formatted during testing. 

Resolution: Base and overtime hours were not added to the April 2019 production survey. 

However, there were evaluated further in cognitive testing. 

2) Change the definition of base wages to: Base wages are the minimum amount 

guaranteed.

Resolution: In the April 2019 production survey, the definition of base wages was changed to: 

Base wages are the minimum amount guaranteed. The definition was then revised and tested 

further: Base wages are the minimum amount paid and do not include bonuses, overtime pay, or 

commissions. For employees on an incentive system, base wages are the minimum amount 

guaranteed. Include in-kind payments. 

3) Consider changing the term Bonus Wages to Bonus Pay.

Resolution: The term “bonus wages” was not changed in the April 2019 production survey. This

issue was monitored in future cognitive testing. 

4) Consider creating a new definition of bonus wages to address respondent misreporting and 

test further.

Resolution: The definition of bonus was not changed in the April 2019 production survey. 

However, a new definition for bonus wages was developed and evaluated further in cognitive 

testing: Bonus wages are wages paid in addition to the base wages. These include performance 

pay (piece rate pay beyond base wage), hazard pay, and bonuses that are paid each pay period. 

Commissions should also be reported under bonus wages. Do not include end of the season 

bonuses.

5) Revise instructions for selecting a worker code. 

Resolution: Instructions for selecting worker codes were revised and evaluated in 

cognitive testing. 

• Report workers under the worker code in which they are working, not under the worker 

code for which they have been trained.

• Report each worker only once under the worker code that requires the highest level of 

skill if the worker performs work in two or more codes. If there is no measurable 

difference in skill requirements, report workers under the worker code in which they 

spend the most time.
iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................1

2. METHODOLOGY...............................................................................................................1

3. RESULTS............................................................................................................................4

3.1 Round 1 ..........................................................................................................................4

3.1.1 Base and Overtime Hours..........................................................................................4

3.1.2 Exclusion of H-2A....................................................................................................5

3.1.3 Question 1 – October Labor Screener ........................................................................6

3.1.4 Question 2 – Number of Workers..............................................................................6

3.1.5 Question 3 – 150 Days..............................................................................................6

3.1.6 Question 4 – Worker Table .......................................................................................6

3.2 Round 2 ..........................................................................................................................8

3.2.1 Base and Overtime Hours..........................................................................................8

3.2.2 Exclusion of H-2A....................................................................................................9

3.2.3 Question 1 – October Labor Screener ...................................................................... 10

3.2.4 Question 2 – Number of Workers............................................................................ 10

3.2.5 Question 4 – Worker Table ..................................................................................... 11

3.3 Other Comments........................................................................................................... 18

4. RECOMMENDATIONS.................................................................................................... 19

5. REFERENCES................................................................................................................... 21

APPENDIX A: Round 1 Questionnaire................................................................................... 22

APPENDIX B: Round 2 Questionnaire ................................................................................... 34
1

Agricultural Labor Base and Overtime Hours Cognitive Testing Report

Heather Ridolfo and Kathy Ott1

Abstract

Ten cognitive interviews were conducted to evaluate the proposed addition of questions on base 

and overtime hours to the Agricultural Labor Survey and an instruction to exclude H-2A 

workers. Results of the cognitive interviewing showed that the addition of questions on base and 

overtime hours does not place additional burden on respondents. Excluding H-2A workers from 

the questionnaire made it easier for respondents to report their workers. However, respondents 

who hired H-2A workers questioned the reason for this exclusion. Although the proposed 

changes worked well, a number of problems with other questions on the survey were found 

during this testing. Specifically, respondents had difficulty categorizing their workers and 

reporting wage information as instructed. 

Key words: Labor, hours worked, wages, cognitive testing

1. INTRODUCTION

In a continuing effort to add questions on base, bonus, and overtime wages to the Agricultural 

Labor Survey, further cognitive testing was conducted in the fall of 2018 to evaluate the 

proposed addition of base and overtime hours to the survey. Specifically, this testing focused on 

the ease of reporting base and overtime hours and the accuracy of those reports. In addition to the 

base and overtime hours questions, an instruction was added to exclude H-2A workers, that is

temporary nonimmigrant foreign workers hired to perform agricultural labor or services of a

temporary or seasonal nature. Although the primary focus of this testing was these new changes 

to the questionnaire, other questions in Section 1 of the survey were also evaluated as time 

permitted. 

2. METHODOLOGY

Forty-nine respondents were contacted by a researcher in NASS’s headquarters to participate in 

this research. Ten respondents agreed to participate. The interviews took place between 

September and November 2018. Respondents were located in eight states (Washington, 

Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Virginia, West Virginia, New York, and New Jersey) and produced a 

variety of commodities, including vegetables, fruit, cattle, equine, and nursery plants. 

Characteristics of the respondents are shown in Table 1. 

1 Heather Ridolfo is an Agricultural Statistician with the National Agricultural Statistics Service, Research and 

Development Division, 1400 Independence Ave SW, Room 6031, Washington, DC 20250. Kathy Ott is a 

Mathematical Statistician with the National Agricultural Statistics Service, Methodology Division, 1400 

Independence Ave SW, Washington, DC 20250.
2

Table 1. Respondent Characteristics

Round Farm Type Pay Type H-2A

Largest 

Number of 

Workers

1 Greenhouse, Nursery, Sod Hourly, Piece Rate Yes unknown

1 Fruit, Nuts, and Berries Hourly, Piece Rate Yes 3,300

1 Greenhouse, Nursery, Sod Hourly No 20

2 Fruit, Nuts, and Berries Salary, Piece Rate Yes 125

2 Fruit, Nuts, and Berries Salary, Hourly, Piece Rate No 35

2 Vegetables Salary, Hourly, Piece Rate Yes 64

2 Equine Salary, Commissions No 13

2

Cattle and Calves Salary, Hourly, Overtime, 

Commissions No 54

2 Fruit, Nuts, and Berries Hourly No 10

2 Vegetables Hourly, Overtime No 125

Two versions of the questionnaire were tested. Three respondents participated in the first round 

of testing and received Version 1 of Question 4 (the worker table) (figure 1). A copy of the full 

questionnaire used in Round 1 can be found in Appendix A. Seven respondents participated in 

Round 2 and received Version 2 of Question 4 (the worker table) (figure 2). A copy of the full 

questionnaire used in Round 2 can be found in Appendix B. 
3

Figure 1. Version 1, Section 1, Question 4
4

Figure 2. Version 2, Section 1, Question 4

Interviews were conducted via a web conference. During recruiting, respondents were asked 

about their computer and web capabilities so that the interview could be conducted using this 

technology. During the web conference, the cognitive interviewer displayed the questionnaire

using screen sharing software and asked the respondent to discuss how he/she would complete 

the survey. Respondents were only asked to complete Section 1 of the survey. Although the 

focus of the interviews was on the base and overtime hours questions and the exclusion of H-2A 

workers, respondents were probed on their question response process for all questions in Section 

1, as time permitted. The data were then analyzed using the constant comparative method of 

analysis (Strauss and Corbin 1990). Following Round 1, changes were made to the questionnaire 

and the revised version (version 2) was tested in Round 2 interviews.

3. RESULTS

3.1 Round 1

3.1.1 Base and Overtime Hours
5

None of the three respondents in Round 1 paid overtime wages. They all indicated their base 

hours would equal their total hours and they would enter zero for overtime hours. All three 

mentioned that agriculture is exempt from overtime. One respondent was confused by the 

overtime questions. He reported zero for overtime hours. When probed on how he interpreted 

that question he said: 

That question, that threw me. How do you define overtime pay? Would it be time 

and a half or hours over 40 hours that you’re not paying time and half because 

agriculture is exempt from overtime? Or overtime over the normal work week?

When asked how he interpreted the term overtime he said, “Most people call it the time 

and a half factor.” He then added that “Agriculture is exempt. In most cases, overtime is 

not being paid for hours over 40. But people work over 40 hours. We used to pay 

overtime, but our base wages have gotten higher.” When he paid overtime in the past, his 

base hours were 42 hours and his workers were paid time and a half for each hour over 

that. Despite the one respondent’s confusion regarding the presence of questions on 

overtime, the base and overtime hours questions were very easy for these respondents to 

answer. 

3.1.2 Exclusion of H-2A

Two respondents commented on the exclusion of H-2A workers from this survey. When reading 

Question 1, one respondent stated, “So you want us to exclude H-2A. That makes it really easy 

for guys like us.” He said H-2A workers made up about 80 percent of his workforce and then 

discussed how they make up the majority of the agricultural labor in his county and the 

surrounding counties. He said for Questions 2-4, not including H-2A would significantly reduce 

the amount of workers he had to report. “If I take out the H-2A, it would be 1,280... with H-2A,

it would be 3,300.” 

Another respondent asked why H-2A workers were excluded from the survey. He said, “Most of 

our workers are H-2A. Why do you exclude H-2A? Why would you want to exclude them?” He 

then said, “Excluding H-2A is a good thing because it’s a feedback look. This is used by DOL to 

determine the adverse effect wage rate.” This respondent then explained how the Department of 

Labor uses the regional median gross wages paid to determine the Adverse Effect Wage Rate 

(AEWR). He said this was a “hyper inflationary” method for determining the AEWR. He said he 

has stopped responding to the Agricultural Labor Survey because of this. “We stopped doing the 

survey because we’re paying, in terms of actual pay, 35 percent more than the median base pay,

$12.19. AWR [sic] is 35 percent more than the median pay of $9 because of this survey. It takes 

the gross wages and converts it into base wages.” He was happy to see the changes made to this 

survey. He said, “Pulling out piece rate gets you closer... to median base pay.” He then added 

that although it is good that we are removing H-2A workers from this survey because they “skew 

the numbers,” it would be better to remove all H-2A employers from the survey. 

But really H-2A employers should be excluded because if they have H-2A, they 

have to pay all domestic workers the AWR [sic] even if they are less skilled, 
6

experienced or productive.... By excluding just H-2A workers you haven’t 

accomplished [removing] numbers that skew a survey because non-H2A are paid 

the same amount. Really no H-2A employers should fill this out.

Like the previous respondent, this respondent indicated that H-2A workers make up a large 

portion of his labor and that excluding them would greatly decrease the amount of workers he 

would need to report. He then wondered if this would affect how his value of sales looked in 

comparison to the number of workers he has on payroll. He thought his high value of sales might 

look odd given the limited number of workers he would be reporting. 

3.1.3 Question 1 – October Labor Screener

All three respondents read through the include and exclude statements when answering this 

question. All three indicated that this question was pretty straightforward and their answer would 

be yes. As mentioned above, one respondent commented on the exclusion of H-2A workers and 

said this made it easier for him to report since so many of his workers were H-2A. 

3.1.4 Question 2 – Number of Workers

All three respondents indicated that Question 2 was easy to answer, and all three 

indicated that they were using the same inclusion criteria in Question 1 to answer 

Question 2. 

3.1.5 Question 3 – 150 Days

This question was not probed on. 

3.1.6 Question 4 – Worker Table

Worker Codes

Two respondents had no problem selecting the appropriate worker codes for their workers. 

However, one respondent had difficulty. This respondent indicated that his workers performed 

jobs in more than one category, and that their pay reflected their skill level and experience, not 

their job titles. He said, “We and most don’t necessarily have formal job titles. The distinction 

between one and the next is what we pay, which reflects experience, skill...” He said he had 

farmworkers who also drive equipment, and his more skilled workers grade and sort while they 

pull orders. He said, “Classifying is the most difficult.” He then pointed out the description 

overlap. He said the worker code ‘farmworkers’ has grading, sorting and packing listed under it 

even though there are separate categories for these things. He said, “That adds to the confusion... 

Most farmworkers are doing grading and sorting because there are few that hire people to do 

grading and sorting 100% of the time... (the worker codes) are not distinct and don’t necessarily 

reflect hierarchy of higher skilled workers.” Previous cognitive testing on the Agricultural Labor 

Survey has found the same issues. Respondents, particularly those who have Field Workers, 

complain that their workers fall under more than one category and the worker codes themselves 

are redundant (e.g., graders and sorters appear in farmworkers). 
7

Gross Wages

Two respondents, who paid piece rate, indicated that gross wages would equal what their 

workers made on an hourly rate plus what they earned on piece rate. One of these respondents 

indicated that he could pull this number out of his payroll records. The third respondent, who 

paid his workers an hourly rate and no overtime or bonuses, said that gross wages would be the 

total hours worked multiplied by the hourly rate. One respondent commented that he liked that 

the gross wages question preceded base, bonus and overtime wages and he liked that the wording 

of those questions began with “Of the total gross wages paid ...”

Base Wages

The respondent who paid his workers an hourly rate said his base wages would equal his total 

gross wages. The two respondents who paid workers piece rate initially reported the minimum 

they were required to pay their workers in the base wage column and the amount the workers 

made above and beyond that amount in the bonus column. However, when they read the 

definition of base wages during probing, they became confused and thought they had reported 

wages incorrectly. The confusion stemmed from the phrase in the base wage definition that said 

“regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece rate, etc.).” When respondents read this, 

they thought it was indicating that they should report total wages paid on piece rate pay in base 

wages. This phrase was added to the definition after a previous cognitive testing study found 

respondents were not reporting salaried workers (Ridolfo and Ott 2019). In the remaining 

interviews for the current study, a new base wage definition was used in Round 2 (version 2 of 

the questionnaire). 

Bonus Wages

As mentioned above, the two respondents who pay piece rate initially thought they should report 

the wages earned above and beyond the hourly rate in the bonus wage column. However, after 

reading the definition of base wages during probing, they both thought they should have reported 

the total wages paid to piece rate workers in the base wage column. The respondent who pays his 

workers an hourly rate said his bonus wages would equal zero.

During probing, two respondents indicated that they paid end of the season bonuses. One 

respondent indicated that he would not report end of the season bonuses on this survey since they 

are only paid seasonally and not weekly. He thought by reporting it on the survey it would seem 

like it is a bonus his workers receive every week. Conversely, the other respondent indicated that 

he would report end of the season bonuses in the bonus column had the survey asked about the 

week the bonus was paid. However, after he read the definition of bonuses, he interpreted bonus 

wages to be performance bonuses that are paid regularly and gave several examples: a) workers 

are paid 50 cents extra per bin if they pick at or above a threshold for number of bins; b) workers 

are paid extra per bin if less than 1 percent of the fruit comes in bruised; c) workers pack boxes 

at or above a threshold they will earn 5 cents more an hour. He said the term “regularly paid 

bonuses” in the definition implies bonuses that are “built into the pay structure.” He added, “It’s 

not a guarantee. That’s why it’s a bonus. Because if you guarantee it, it would just be wages.” 
8

One respondent stated that he did not like the term “bonus wage.” He said, “Rather than have 

total bonus wages, put bonus earnings because it’s not necessarily a wage. Wage is more like 

hourly in my mind.” A few others in later interviews also indicated this. One respondent 

suggested adding “piece rate” to the bonus definition. He said performance pay is not necessarily 

piece rate. 

The respondents who paid piece rate volunteered their opinion regarding the division of these 

wages between base and bonus wages. However, they were not in agreement. One respondent 

indicated that he liked the division of piece rate pay between base and bonus wages. He said he 

has workers who are paid a minimum of $12.19 an hour but they can make $16, $30, or $35 an 

hour depending on the task. He said, “By lumping it all together, it distorts things, particularly if 

they’re categorized by job category. ...if you’re able to pull out piece rate, you get a better 

understanding of what the rates are.” Conversely, the other respondent indicated that he preferred 

reporting the total amount paid to piece rate workers in the base wage column. He said if his 

workers picked a lot and he separated the wages out by base and bonus, someone was just 

looking at the hours worked and base wages paid may think he is paying them less than 

minimum wage. 

Overtime Wages

No respondents in Round 1 paid their workers overtime wages. These respondents indicated they 

would enter zero for overtime wages. All three respondents interpreted overtime as referring to 

hours worked for which workers are paid time and half and all three indicated that agriculture is 

exempt from paying overtime. One respondent stated that his workers work anywhere from 40-

50 hours a week and they are always paid the same wage rate for that time. In the past, he did 

pay overtime (time and a half) and that was for time worked beyond 42 hours. 

3.2 Round 2

The questionnaire was changed in Round 2 to address issues found in Round 1. Specifically, the 

instructions in Section 1, Question 3 were changed to address confusion that respondents who 

paid piece rate had with reporting base and bonus wages. The definition of base wages was 

changed to “Base wages are the minimum amount paid excluding bonus and overtime pay.” The

clause “regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece rate, etc.)” was moved to the include 

statement that instructs respondents to only report workers directly hired and paid by the farm 

operation (Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation, regardless of method of pay 

(salaried, hourly, piece rate, etc.)). These same changes were made to the instructions in Section 

2, Question 1 and the same change was made to the instruction to report only workers hired and 

paid directly by the operation in Section 1, Question 1, and in Section 3, Question 1 for 

consistency. However, these sections were not tested. 

3.2.1 Base and Overtime Hours

Respondents, who did not pay overtime wages, indicated that their base hours would always 

equal their total hours, and they would enter zero in overtime hours or leave it blank. As in the 
9

first round, some respondents, who do not pay overtime, mentioned that agriculture is exempt 

from overtime. One respondent questioned why the survey asked about overtime hours and 

wages. He said, “In agriculture, you’re exempt from overtime as long as you’re growing, 

picking, and packing your own vegetables.” He said if you are packing someone else’s 

vegetables and your employees work overtime hours, then you have to pay them overtime wages. 

However, if they work overtime hours while packing vegetables grown on the same operation,

they are exempt from overtime pay. He said he has been approached by other farmers asking him 

to pack their product, but he will not do it. “We say no because it opens up a whole can of 

worms.” He questioned why overtime was asked about on the survey since agriculture is exempt, 

stating “Agriculture across the board is overtime exempt as long as you’re doing your own 

stuff.” Although he was surprised to see questions on overtime hours and wages on the survey, it 

was easy for him to answer them since his response would always be zero. Others also indicated 

it was easy to report base and overtime hours. One respondent said, “I don’t think base and 

overtime are confusing at all. It’s easy for me to say no to overtime and everything falls under 

base.”

Another respondent, who did not pay overtime, was unsure at first how to answer the base hours

question. She said, “We don’t do overtime. I don’t know how I would answer that. I guess I 

would put total. Base is the same as my total hours worked since we don’t do overtime as a 

farm.” She then added, “I can’t say we have a set base. We generally work 45 hours but weather 

depending, especially during harvest. It would be 30 hours if it’s raining a lot.” Two other 

respondents, who do not pay overtime, also indicated that their normal work weeks are longer 

than 40 hours, but they do not pay overtime. Both of these respondents indicated their workers 

typically work 48 hours a week. 

Two respondents paid overtime. One of these respondents only pays overtime to his year-round 

employees. He indicated that these employees are managers and equipment operators. The other 

respondent indicated that she only pays overtime wages to her hourly employees. These 

employees were farmworkers who feed cattle, help collect semen, and clean. Both respondents

indicated they would separate the hours worked at the normal wage rate from the hours worked 

at the overtime rate (i.e., time and a half) and report them in base hours and overtime hours,

respectively. For example, one respondent, who paid overtime, indicated that he pays time and a 

half for hours beyond 45 hours. He has 10 managers who on average work 60 hours a week. He 

would multiply 45 hours by 10 and report 450 base hours and multiply 15 hours by 10 and report 

150 overtime hours, and 550 total hours. 

3.2.2 Exclusion of H-2A

Two respondents in this round had H-2A workers. Both read the instruction to exclude H-2A 

workers. As one respondent was reading Question 1, he said, “Pretty straight forward... Oh wait, 

I just caught something! It says exclude H2A workers. Why would you exclude these?” Later in 

the interview, he came back to this topic and said, “I’d like to understand your reasoning for that

... For us you might be heading in the wrong direction if you exclude H2A workers for us.” For 

the October reference week, he reported 34 workers, but had he included the H-2A workers in 

his response, his answer would have been 64. At the end of the interview, he said “You need to 
10

figure out how to include H2A ... they are paid like everyone else.” He was concerned that the 

statistics produced from this survey would not be accurate if H-2A workers were not included.

The other respondent, who had H-2A workers, commented that excluding H-2A workers made 

the questionnaire easier to answer since he would need to report a lot fewer workers. When 

answering Question 1 he said, “Because we’re almost exclusively H2A – it’s H2A and family 

members – it’s a pretty simple answer for us.” This respondent had 57 H-2A workers during the 

October reference period. Later in the interview, he commented that many farms in his area hire 

H-2A workers. “In our growing regions, there’s other growers that are in the same situation... 

larger farms will have as many as 250 harvesters and 5 non-H2As ... Local workers don’t exist.” 

3.2.3 Question 1 – October Labor Screener

Most respondents read the include and exclude statements out loud before answering Question 1,

and most indicated that this question was easy to answer. However, one respondent asked for 

clarification regarding the term “value added.” Since this question was not the primary focus of 

the interviews, the interviewer defined value added workers as workers who alter the product in a 

way that adds value to it such as packaging vegetables, washing and packaging eggs in cartons, 

or transforming product into something else like berries into jam. The respondent then indicated 

that he would not exclude these types of workers as instructed. “We wouldn’t separate those 

types of workers. I’d consider them just regular workers. I don’t consider it a separate practice.” 

He said his operation grows sweet corn, cabbage, and squash. They machine harvest sweet corn 

and then pack it in their shed. They put it in crates, RPCs, or corrugated plastic containers and 

ship it out wholesale. The cabbage and squash are packed in the field. He added that “nothing 

happens to that.” However, the hard “winter” squash is put in bins, then washed and packed in 

the shed using different types of packaging depending on the company that is purchasing it. He 

said the work that is considered value added is part of their normal duties when picking and 

packing. He said, “It’s all part of the picking process. I would just report them all here. We don’t 

have specific people that stick to certain jobs. They move around to where they’re needed.” 

3.2.4 Question 2 – Number of Workers

This question was not extensively probed on due to time constraints. Some respondents indicated 

they could determine the number of agricultural workers on the payroll that week using their 

payroll records. In general, respondents adhered to the instructions and excluded workers such as 

contract workers, H-2A workers, and retail workers. One respondent, who answered 34, 

indicated that if he had included H-2A workers, his response would have been 64. He said, 

“That’s a big difference.” 

As noted above, one respondent included value added workers in his response. Another 

respondent excluded family members who were on payroll. This respondent said he did so 

because other forms typically have instructions to exclude family members. The interviewer then 

pointed out the include statement that says to include family members on payroll. He said he 

never read the include statements. However, he did read the exclude statements and that was how 

he knew to exclude his H-2A workers. 
11

One respondent indicated that she was confused about who to include in her response. In 

particular, she was not sure if she should include sales and office staff such as herself. She said, 

“The first question I have is, yes, I’m involved with billing agricultural people but are you just 

looking for people who are breeding cattle and working with cattle? ... Is it physical labor? 

Mine’s more mental... The salespeople, who go out and sell semen to farmers, are they included 

in agricultural work? Or just people who breed cattle?” She indicated that her operation is a coop owned by farmers who use their services. They house bulls, process semen, breed cows, and 

sell semen. She had several categories of workers, who are all on her payroll: 1) technicians who 

breed cows, 2) sales people who sell semen to farmers who breed their own cows, 3) 

farmworkers who tend to the animals, 4) other workers who operate the machinery to process 

semen and 5) office workers. She then asked again “Am I thinking of all workers?” 

3.2.5 Question 4 – Worker Table

Worker Codes

Three respondents had no difficulty selecting a worker code. However, four respondents had 

difficulty selecting an appropriate worker code. As in the first round, some of these respondents 

indicated that their workers perform jobs that fall under multiple codes. One respondent 

indicated that his workers “are always changing hats.” He said during the fall they are doing 

maintenance work, painting, and packaging. During harvest they are sorting fruit as they pick. 

He said for simplicity sake, he would just list all of his workers under code 12 (farmworkers). He 

said it was too much work to try and figure out exactly what they were doing during the 

reference week. 

Similarly, another respondent said his workers could fall under codes 11 and 12, but for the sake 

of simplicity, he would just list them all under 12. This respondent indicated that he separates his 

workers in his payroll system using codes specific to worker’s compensation: retail, field work, 

packing, and clerical. He has difficulty categorizing his workers using the codes provided on the 

Agricultural Labor Survey. Like the previous respondent, he interpreted this question as asking 

what work the workers were performing during the reference week. His workers operate 

equipment and hand pick and it is too time consuming to determine what they were doing during 

the reference week. He said, “I think one of the gray areas would be 11 and 12. Trying to 

separate the guys in the field driving the tractor and the ones that are picking. It’s a muddled 

mess. So I just pushed everyone into 12 ... To separate their wages on a voluntary basis at a busy 

time when you don’t have much time, am I going to spend the time to do it?”

Another respondent, who also had workers who could fall under codes 11 and 12, said she would 

list them all under 12 (farmworkers) because they would not be using equipment every day. She 

said, “The bulk of what they do is thinning, pruning, and harvesting.” 

Another respondent also indicated that his workers were hired to perform multiple jobs 

throughout the year, and he could list them under multiple codes. He said, “I might have an 

operator that one day will be that but the next day will step in and be a packer or something like 

that. It’s hard to pick one group and separate them out. They move around. If one guy doesn’t do 

a good job and we move him around to another job. I probably wouldn’t separate them to quite 

so many different categories.” This respondent indicated that he would just list all of his workers 
12

under code 15 (all other field workers). When asked why he said, “The same people will do jobs 

from 12, jobs from 13 and 14. It just kind of depends on the time of year. The same people who 

plant, will harvest and field pick and they’re sorting and grading ... [15 is] just kind of all other.”

One respondent was unsure where to list workers who pack and package semen. She initially 

said she would list these workers under code 24 (all other livestock workers). She said they do 

operate machinery when filling straws with semen. However, they are really observing the 

machines to make sure everything is operating properly. She said, “It’s not like they’re picking 

an apple and putting it in a basket.” She then said she could list them under code 22 (graders and 

sorters) because they are checking the volume of the semen and making sure it is good enough to 

freeze. 

Respondents also had difficulty because they felt the worker codes were redundant and did not 

understand the difference between them. For example, one respondent could not see a distinction 

between codes 31 and 32. Another respondent did not see a distinction between codes 13 and 14. 

He said, “The classification between 13 and 14 to me doesn’t make much sense.” His workers in 

the packing shed also grade and sort. He has a machine that is separating the product by size and 

weight. “I don’t see how you distinguish between 13 and 14.” He said his workers are grading 

and sorting while they pack. He ended up listing everyone under code 14. 

Total Hours

Respondents generally did not have difficulty reporting total hours worked. One respondent 

indicated that she did not track hours for her one group of workers. She said for her animal 

breeders, there is “no time clock and we don’t require them to send us hours.” She asked, “Can I 

use 40 hours a week and figure it that way?” She also commented that some might be working 

overtime, but they are not paid overtime wages. She ultimately decided to report 40 hours a week 

per employee because they breed cows 7 days a week but do not necessarily work 8-hour days. 

She said, “Cows need to be bred 7 days a week ... I have no way of pinning that down.”

Respondents, who pay piece rate, did track hours to ensure their workers were picking enough to 

make minimum wage or the AEWR. However, two respondents did not track hours worked in 

the same system used for payroll. One respondent who pays piece rate said reporting hours 

worked creates extra work for him because he has to go to a different spreadsheet to get that 

information. Similarly, another respondent, who pays piece rate, said when she is paying piece 

rate, she only tracks hours worked on timecards in case they get audited. However, she inputs the 

number of boxes picked in QuickBooks. The only time she records hours in QuickBooks is when 

they are being paid an hourly rate. Despite this, she would know the number of hours the crew 

worked on piece rate that week by looking at the time cards. She added that they all typically 

work the same number of hours. She said if one worker worked less, she would just leave that 

person out, and then multiply the number of workers by hours worked (e.g., 35 workers X 45 

hours) and then add the other worker’s hours to that total.

Gross Wages

Gross wages were easy for respondents to report in this round. Respondents would either pull 

this number out of their payroll or calculate it by multiplying hours worked by the wage rate and 
13

number of employees. One respondent indicated that his workers make different wage rates. In 

order to report gross wages, he would need to multiply hours by wage rate for each employee 

and sum them. If respondents were paid bonuses or overtime wages, this amount would be 

included in gross wages. 

One respondent indicated that it was easy for her to pull gross wages out of QuickBooks. 

However, to get gross wages for the different groups of workers, she would need to assign the 

worker codes and calculate the gross wages paid to managers and subtract that from gross wages 

paid to all employees to get the gross wages paid to farmworkers. 

Respondents who did not pay their workers once a week indicated that they would need to divide 

the gross wages paid by the number of weeks in their pay period to get the weekly pay. For 

example, one respondent said her manager is paid once a month. To get gross wages for the 

reference week, she would need to divide his wages by four. 

One notable finding that came out of these interviews is that a few respondents indicated their 

base, bonus, and overtime pay would not sum up to their gross wages. For example, one 

respondent indicated that workers are paid bonuses when a horse sells if they helped train or care 

for the horse. However, this bonus is paid outside of payroll and therefore would not be part of 

the gross wages reported on the questionnaire, which she pulls from her payroll records. This 

same respondent indicated that her workers’ gross wages are lower than average because she 

covers her workers’ housing costs. “We do furnish housing and furnish utilities.” She said that 

attracts people to her farm. They can live there at no expense. She said not all of her employees 

take advantage of it. Right now, she has six employees living on the farm. Some live nearby on 

their own properties and she gives them a housing allowance. She said, “It’s not like total 

housing and utilities.” She said, “It might be something you’d want to ask about especially on 

horse farms. We have to have people on hand.” Her daughter and son-in-law are paid an even 

lower salary than the other employees – their gross wages for one week would be $300 apiece. 

However, they make significantly more through bonuses and a consulting, training, facility usage 

fee that they are paid. She said she may report the bonuses in the bonus column, but it would be 

significantly larger than their base pay. She would not report the consulting, training, facility 

usage fee on the questionnaire. 

Another respondent, who pays her animal breeders a commission, indicated that she does not 

consider commissions to be base or bonus wages and therefore she felt she had no place to report 

these earnings on the questionnaire other than in gross wages. At first, she considered listing 

commissions under base wages. However, she considers base wages to be guaranteed wages, and 

commissions are not guaranteed. She said out of the 20 animal breeders she has, only two are 

guaranteed wages; the rest work strictly on commission. The two animal breeders, who are 

guaranteed pay, earn $300 each a week plus commissions. So she would report 20 animal 

breeders, who only made $600 in base wages, nothing in bonus or overtime pay, and her base 

wages would be significantly lower than her gross wages. Also, commissions vary greatly across 

employees depending on the region they work in and the number of cows they breed (e.g., 50%

percent – 65 percent). To determine gross wages for this group of workers, she would need to 

look up the company’s earnings during that time period and take an average of commissions 

earned (50 percent of earnings) and multiply that percentage by the total earnings to determine 
14

how much this group of employees were paid in commissions, and then add in the $600 

guaranteed to the two breeders. Additionally, this same respondent’s sales staff’s gross wages 

would include their base wages plus their commissions, and she would not report the 

commissions elsewhere on the form. Note that another respondent considered commissions from 

the sale of a horse to be a bonus paid out to employees.

Base Wages

Most respondents reported that their base wages would equal their gross wages since they did not 

pay bonuses or overtime. One respondent was initially confused about the difference between 

gross and base wages. He asked, “What’s the difference between gross and base?” He then 

added, “I don’t do bonuses. ...for me, gross is the same as base because I don’t give bonuses. I 

give bonuses once a year.” The two respondents, who paid overtime, indicated that the base 

wages would be the total wages paid at the standard wage rate. For example, one respondent paid 

overtime wages for hours worked beyond 45 hours. For base wages, he would multiply 45 hours 

by the standard wage rate for each employee to get the total. 

Most respondents indicated that the base wage definition matched their interpretation of the term. 

However, one respondent was confused by “minimum amount paid.” He said he was not sure 

what was meant by this and thought it would be a lot clearer to just say, “base wages excludes 

bonus and overtime pay.” 

Three respondents paid piece rate. None read the base wage definition before reporting their 

workers’ wages. All three indicated that their base wages equaled their gross wages and there 

were no bonus wages. One respondent indicated that although he pays piece rate, his workers 

never pick enough to reach the adverse effect wage rate, so he always pays them an hourly rate. 

The other two respondents indicated that they could not separate their piece rate pay into base 

and bonus wages and moreover, they did not feel any part of piece rate pay was a bonus. 

Looking at the definition of base wages, one of these respondents indicated he could not report 

base wages as the minimum amount paid because that does not reflect his pay structure. He said 

the definition implied that base wages was the minimum amount a farmer could “get away with” 

paying a worker. He said, “I don’t know where they’re coming from. Base wages are what is 

paid, excluding bonus and overtime would be my suggestion.” He also did not consider piece 

rate wages to be a bonus. He said he is not paying his workers by the hour; they are paid by the 

bucket and what they are paid for the week is figured on a weekly basis, not daily. In the 

beginning of the week, they may be picking something that does not yield a lot of earnings, and 

it will equate to about $9 an hour. But later in the week, they will pick a different type of 

vegetable that yields a lot more in earnings and they will make closer to $20 an hour. At the end

of the week, they calculate everything they have picked and determine if on average they earned 

at or above the AEWR and they typically do. If they do not, they will adjust their pay so they 

make the equivalent of the AEWR. Although he is required to pay his workers the AEWR and 

will adjust individual worker’s pay at the end of the week, if they do not reach that amount, his 

goal is not to pay them that minimum amount. He indicated that his workers are there to make 

money and on average they are making over $20 an hour. He has set values per bucket that he 

pays workers. But he also pays them an hourly rate for picking certain types of vegetables. For 
15

example, if they were paid by the piece to pick cucumbers they would earn around $9 an hour, 

and if they did this for half the week and the rest of the week picked something that yielded a 

higher pay per piece, it would drag down their average pay to around $13.25 an hour. He said, 

“If they do bust their ass for half a week and all the other part of the week drags down their pay 

and they make $13.25 an hour, why bust their butt when it’s going to drag down their pay? 

...They want to make money. That’s what they’re here for.”

Similarly, another respondent who pays piece rate did not view any of their pay as a bonus. She 

said she would report the same amount in base wages as gross wages. “I just think of it as their 

regular work. It’s not a bonus. I just think of it as their regular wage.” She said she does track 

hours and how much they pick to make sure everyone is making more than minimum wage. She 

said for example if her workers are picking a variety of apples where they are paid $18/bin, she 

will know they need to pick at least 25 bins to make minimum wage. But she said she is not 

trying to pay minimum wage. “That’s not what I want my workers to make. They should be over 

that. I never think to draw the line at minimum wage and separate them by that.” She said she 

could see how people who have H-2A workers need to be sure their workers are making enough 

to meet the adverse wage rate. But for her, she expects her workers to make beyond minimum 

every week, and she only checks it in case they get audited. But her workers usually make well 

beyond minimum wage. She said she has one “slow, older guy who I always have to pay special 

attention to. Everyone else is way above.” She said she has a line in her payroll that indicates 

what the minimum wage pay should be. She said she always checks him to make sure he is 

making above minimum wage and if he is, then she’s sure everyone else is. She said it’s not 

usually an issue for them. If he’s not making minimum wage, she will calculate out what she 

needs to pay him to get him above minimum wage and add it to his check. She uses him as her 

“baseline.”

Like the previous respondent, this respondent pays the same workers a piece rate and an hourly 

rate depending on what they are picking. She provided a good example of how complicated her 

pay structure can get in any given week. She said on average her workers are paid $18/bin to 

pick apples. However, some varieties, like honey crisps, have to be stem clipped because they 

bruise more easily. When picking this variety, they are paid $35/bin, and on the second pick they 

are paid $40/bin. She said some varieties of apples bruise more easily or need to be stem clipped 

or need to be picked by color and she does not necessarily want people rushing to fill bins. To 

slow them down, she will switch them over to an hourly rate. She said “the regular old-style 

varieties” are all paid by bin “like red delicious.” She said honey crisps need to be picked by 

color and they need to be stem clipped. They typically have always paid by hour for this type. 

But this year, they experimented with picking one “block” of mature trees by bin to see if they 

could improve efficiency. The rest of the honey crisp blocks they picked by hour. In 

QuickBooks, she can specify the different varieties picked and put in the different amounts per 

bin. She can also put in an hourly rate. She said there are some weeks that a person may be paid 

an hourly rate for some of their time, by bin for another part of the time, and vacation pay on 

another part. She said the software is pretty flexible in that regard. She said how she is paying 

her workers (hourly, piece rate, pay per variety) will vary week to week, depending on what they 

are picking. 
16

As mentioned above, one respondent who pays workers a commission struggled with what to 

include in base wages. When answering base wages, she initially said, “We have a lot of people 

who are commission. Does that become base wages then?” She interpreted the term base wages 

to mean guaranteed pay. She did not feel commissions should be reported as base wages since 

they are not guaranteed. She indicated that for her two groups of workers, who earn 

commissions, commissions would only be reported in gross wages and nowhere else on the form. 

This means that she would report base wages that were significantly lower than gross wages. She 

then added that out of her 20 animal breeders, two are guaranteed $300 a week plus their 

commissions. She would report this guaranteed amount for the two workers. However, she was 

concerned her base wages would look incorrect given the number of workers, and the number of 

gross wages earned. 

Bonus Wages

Respondents interpreted bonus wages in different ways. Some respondents interpreted bonus 

wages as bonuses that are paid weekly. For example, when reading this question one respondent 

said, “We don’t do weekly bonuses. We do a yearly if we do anything.” Similarly, other 

respondents, who interpreted this question as asking about weekly bonuses, indicated they would 

report nothing in the bonus column because their bonuses are all paid at the end of the season. 

One respondent interpreted bonuses to be “performance pay” that was paid on a weekly basis. 

One respondent interpreted bonuses as the commission earned from the sale of a horse. When 

she first read this question she said, “I don’t pay bonus wages.” But then she said, “I do pay 

bonus if we sell a horse for a lot of money.” She said she would pay a bonus to a person who 

trained or was a caretaker of the horse when she sells it. She said, “But I pay it as a contract 

amount; they pay taxes on it,” indicating that it did not go through her payroll. She then said she 

did not pay a bonus during the reference week. However, had she paid a bonus during the 

reference week, she would have reported it. She said, “Last week I paid a girl $2,250 for a horse 

she trained,” which was 5 percent of the purchase price. She said this was paid outside of payroll 

and the employee was responsible for paying taxes on the bonus. She then commented that if she 

reported this on the questionnaire as a bonus, the worker’s bonus might seem much larger than 

her base pay, which was around $500. However, it would have been one employee out of 10 that 

made a bonus of $2,250, and as indicated above, this bonus would not be included in the gross 

wages since it is not paid through payroll. She said, “Total gross wages is what the salary is .... 

If I paid a bonus, it wouldn’t be in there.”

Note that another respondent, who paid commissions, did not view commissions to be bonuses. 

She doesn’t consider a commission to be a bonus or base pay. When asked why she said, 

“Because they earned it. It’s not a bonus.” She said they get a percentage for every unit they sell, 

and it is part of their wages. She said the word bonus “implies it is above and beyond. We expect 

our people to be out there selling. It’s part of their wages, not a bonus.” She said again that a 

bonus is “above and beyond.” This same respondent also thought the term “wage” implied 

guaranteed pay, which was the opposite of a bonus, which is not guaranteed. 
17

Others interpreted this question as asking about end of the season bonuses. Respondents 

calculated their end of the season bonuses in different ways. One respondent indicated that in the 

past, his farm provided a bonus as an incentive to get workers to stay through the end of the 

season. They would pay 3 cents for every bushel picked during the season and workers would be 

paid that amount as a bonus in their final paycheck, but they had to stay for the entire season to 

receive it. He said depending on how fast they picked during the season, they would earn 

between $500 and $800 in bonus pay at the end of the season. Another respondent said that her 

employees get a bonus at the end of the year based on the company’s overall profit for the year.

These respondents indicated that if the reference period asked about the pay period when they 

received these end of the season bonuses, they would report them. But since the questionnaire 

used during testing did not ask about that pay period, they did not report it. 

Respondents, who paid piece rate, did not view any part of their workers’ pay as a bonus. 

Instead, they would report all of the workers’ pay under base wages. One of these respondents 

interpreted bonus wages to be end of the season bonuses, which he no longer pays. 

After respondents provided their interpretation of this question, they were asked to read the 

bonus wage definition and asked if the definition matched their interpretation of this question. 

Some respondents said the definition matched how they were interpreting this question. Others 

indicated the definition changed how they were interpreting this question. For example, the 

respondent, who interpreted bonus wages to be sales commissions, indicated that she would not 

report them as bonus wages after reading the definition and seeing “regularly paid.” She said she 

does not consider her bonuses regularly paid because receiving a bonus “depends on the duties of 

the person, and we don’t sell horses every week.”

Two respondents who interpreted bonus wages as end of the season bonuses indicated that the 

bonus wage definition changed how they understood this question. After reading the definition,

they interpreted this question as asking about bonuses that are paid weekly. One of these 

respondents said he only had one employee that receives a weekly bonus. He said this employee 

receives $60 in bonus pay for every week that he works regardless of how many hours he 

worked. This respondent noted that this employee was the only one out of the five he placed in 

this worker group to earn a bonus. Another respondent, who interpreted bonus wages as the 

bonus she pays employees at the end of the year based on profits, said that bonus is not “a 

regular bonus.” She said she interpreted regularly paid bonuses as bonuses paid to “assembly line 

people” or people in agriculture who get bonuses based on how much milk they produce; where 

they get or can get these bonuses regularly, meaning on a weekly basis. 

However, some respondents, who did pay end of the season bonuses, continued to think they 

should be reported in the bonus wage column even after reading the definition. The term 

“regularly paid” in the bonus definition did not help these respondents understand to not report 

these types of bonuses. For example, the respondent who pays a “gas bonus” at the end of the 

season indicated that she views that bonus as regularly occurring because she provides it every 

year. She said, “Regular, like one a year. Regular even though it’s not a once a month thing. To 

me, it’s regular. I do it every year.” 
18

As mentioned above, one respondent, who pays piece rate, disagreed with dividing piece rate pay 

between base and bonus wages. 

Another respondent, who paid piece rate, continued to think this question was measuring 

performance pay, which he did not view as the same as piece rate. He described performance pay 

as, “Bonus if we had an incentive for the number of bushels picked or some way you could work 

out a quality bonus. We don’t do that. But that’s what it would mean.” He said it would “fall 

along the lines of performance pay.” However, this respondent also indicated that his workers 

rarely pick enough to reach the AEWR so most of the time, he pays them hourly. 

The third respondent, who paid piece rate, shifted his understanding of this question after reading 

the definition during probing. This respondent is referenced above as initially interpreting this 

question as asking about end of the season bonuses and then after reading the definition 

interpreting this question as asking about weekly bonuses (he pays one worker $60 a week in 

bonus pay for every week worked). Like the other two respondents, he did not view any part of 

piece rate pay to be a bonus. Furthermore, he said it would be difficult for him to separate out 

piece rate pay into base and bonus wages. He said he would need to separate base from bonus for 

each employee since he has some that pick faster than others. For example, some of his 

employees pick anywhere from the equivalent of $10 an hour to $25 an hour. 

Finally, three respondents indicated that they did not like the use of the word “wage” when 

talking about bonuses. These respondents said the term wage negates the term bonus. They 

indicated that wage implies it’s something that they are expecting to earn whereas bonus is above 

and beyond their normal wages. One respondent said, “In the table, rather than have total bonus 

wages put bonus earnings, because it’s not necessarily a wage. Wage is more like hourly in my 

mind.” Another respondent indicated that she doesn’t include the bonuses in her payroll, it’s paid 

out separately. Like the other respondents she indicated that it’s not guaranteed to them. She 

would rather this question use different terminology such as “total bonus paid or “additional 

pay.” Others suggested changing it to “bonus earnings” or “bonus pay.” 

Overtime Wages

Respondents interpreted overtime wages to be time and a half. The majority of respondents did 

not pay overtime, often noting that agriculture is exempt from overtime. These respondents 

either left the overtime wage column blank or entered zero. 

Two respondents did pay overtime wages. As indicated above, they would multiple time and a 

half by overtime hours worked to get the overtime wages paid. One respondent indicated that his 

workers earned overtime for hours worked beyond 45 hours, and the other respondent indicated 

that workers earned overtime for hours worked beyond 40 hours. 

3.3 Other Comments

A couple of respondents were familiar with this survey and had recently filled it out. These 

respondents commented on how burdensome this survey is to complete. One respondent 

described completing this survey as “a very time-consuming project.” She said, “I try to ignore it 
19

until I get my second notice.” This respondent said she has a lot of difficulty determining who 

she should report as an agricultural worker and how to report their wages since so many of her 

employees earn commission. She indicated that this survey takes her over an hour to complete 

and laughed when the interviewer told her it was estimated to take 20 minutes on average. She 

said, 

Dream on! I bet it takes over an hour. I have to divide everything, because we don’t pay 

on a weekly basis. It would be easier to put in a whole year of data. To come up with one 

week of payroll information is a time consumer.

Another respondent also talked about his frustration with the amount of time given to complete

the survey. He said he received the survey on Friday or Saturday of the previous week and in the 

letter, it said if the survey was not completed by the 15th (Monday), an enumerator would be sent

to collect the data. He asked, “How can you expect to pull this together over a weekend and 

submit it by Monday?” He said he ended up filling it out on paper and then transferring it to the 

web form and submitted it Monday morning and two hours later, an enumerator showed up at his 

door. “Giving us the weekend to get something pulled together is asking a little much.” He then 

said he could “whip something together in 20 minutes if I didn’t care what the numbers say, but 

it takes a couple of hours if I’m going to report accurately.” He said if respondents are not 

provided enough time to complete the survey on their own, then the enumerator who comes out 

is going to encounter a “grumpy” respondent or the respondent is just going to provide

inaccurate information. He added that he has a good payroll system and these numbers are fairly 

easy for him to pull out, but he imagined a farmer that is working off of handwritten records 

would have a hard time with this survey.

This same respondent indicated frustration with the web instrument. As mentioned above, he 

filled the survey out on paper and then transferred it to the web. When he filled it out on paper,

he did not fill out Question 1c in Section 4 Value of Sales, because he did not have time. He said 

this question would take a lot of time to answer. He said he typically does not know the answer 

to this until November or December. When he went online, he noticed that he was not asked this 

question. He said he would have been very annoyed if he had spent the time answering this 

question on paper and then found it was not asked in the web instrument. However, this 

respondent should have skipped out of Question 1c. When filling out the paper questionnaire, he 

had missed the skip in the Value of Sales Question 1b instructing him to go to page 10 item 2. 

The web instrument automatically skipped him out of it. 

4. RECOMMENDATIONS

1) If base and overtime hours are needed to calculate the wage rate, add them to the 

questionnaire as worded and formatted during testing. 

Resolution: Base and overtime hours were not added to the April 2019 production survey. 

However, they were evaluated further in cognitive testing. 

2) Change the definition of base wages to: Base wages are the minimum amount 

guaranteed.
20

Resolution: In the April 2019 production survey, the definition of base wages was changed to: 

Base wages are the minimum amount guaranteed. The definition was then revised and tested 

further: Base wages are the minimum amount paid and do not include bonuses, overtime pay, 

commissions. For employees on an incentive system, base wages are the minimum amount 

guaranteed. Include in-kind payments. 

3) Consider changing the term Bonus Wages to Bonus Pay.

Resolution: The term “bonus wages” was not changed in the April 2019 production survey. This 

issue was monitored in future cognitive testing. 

4) Consider creating a new definition of bonus wages to address respondent misreporting and 

test further

Resolution: The definition of bonus was not changed in the April 2019 production survey. 

However, a new definition for bonus wages was developed and evaluated further in cognitive 

testing: Bonus wages are wages paid in addition to the base wages. These include performance 

pay (piece rate pay beyond base wage), hazard pay, and bonuses that are paid each pay period. 

Commissions should also be reported under bonus wages. Do not include end of the season 

bonuses.

5) Revise instructions for selecting a worker code. 

Resolution: Instructions for selecting worker codes were revised and evaluated in 

cognitive testing. 

• Report workers under the worker code in which they are working, not under the worker 

code for which they have been trained.

• Report each worker only once under the worker code that requires the highest level of 

skill if the worker performs work in two or more codes. If there is no measurable 

difference in skill requirements, report workers under the worker code in which they 

spend the most time.
21

5. REFERENCES

Ridolfo, H., and Ott, K. (2020), Cognitive Testing of the 2018 April Agricultural Labor Survey.

Washington, DC: National Agricultural Statistics Service. 

Strauss, A. C., and Corbin, J. (1990), Basics of Qualitative Research: Grounded Theory 

Procedures and Techniques, Newbury Park: Sage Publications. 
22

APPENDIX A: ROUND 1 QUESTIONNAIRE
AGRICULTURAL LABOR SURVEY – OCTOBER 2018 

OMB No. 0535-0109

Approval Expires: 3/31/2021 

Project Code: 956

SurveyId: 4012

USDA/NASS

United States 

Department of 

Agriculture

NATIONAL 

AGRICULTURAL 

STATISTICS 

SERVICE

National Operations Division 

9700 Page Avenue, Suite 400 

St. Louis, MO 63132-1547 

Phone: 1-888-424-7828

Fax: 1-855-415-3687

E-mail: nass@nass.usda.gov

Please make corrections to name, address and ZIP Code, ifnecessary.

The information you provide will be used for statistical purposes only. Your responses will be kept confidential and any person who willfully discloses ANY 

identifiable information about you or your operation is subject to a jail term, a fine, or both. This survey is conducted in accordance with the Confidential 

Information Protection provisions of Title V, Subtitle A, Public Law 107-347 and other applicable Federal laws. For more information on how we protect your 

information please visit: https://www.nass.usda.gov/confidentiality. Response to this survey is voluntary.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of 

information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number is 0535-0109. The time required to complete this information 

collection is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and 

maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

State POID Tract Subtr.

1. [Verify name and mailing address of this operation. Make any corrections 

necessary (including the correct operation name) on the label and continue.]

2. Since June 1, 2018 have you or will you (name on label)--

a. grow any crops or cut hay?

☐ [Check if name label verified]

[INCLUDE grains, row crops, oilseeds, fruits, nuts, vegetables (including strawberries and melon crops), nursery 

and greenhouse, Christmas trees, and other specialty crops.]

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

b. own or raise any livestock, poultry, bees or aquaculture?

[INCLUDE livestock and poultry owned, and any being raised under contract for someone else.]

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

c. sell any agricultural products?

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

d. receive government agricultural payments?

[EXCLUDE government payments received as a landlord.]

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

e. have more than 19 acres of idle cropland or more than 99 acres of pastureland?

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Go to page 11]
2

3. Are the day-to-day decisions for this operation made by one individual, 

a hired manager, or partners? [Check one]

☐ One individual - [Go to Section 1 on page 3.]

☐ A hired manager - [Go to Section 1 on page 3.]

☐ Partners - (Continue)

How many individuals are involved in the day-to-day decisions of this operation? 

(Enter the number of partners.) ......................................................................................

Include the partner named on the label. Partners jointly operate land and share in decision making. Do not include 

landlords and tenants as partners.

4. Please identify the other person(s) in this partnership, then go to Section 1, page 3.

[Verify partners' names and make necessary corrections if names have already been entered.]

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9922

Ind. Op.

9924

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9923

Ind. Op.

9924

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9927

Ind. Op.

9924

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9928

Ind. Op.

9924

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

Number

For Office Use Only

R. Unit

9921

June 1

9930

Subst

9941
3

Section 1 - PAID WORKERS for October

October 2018

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16 17 18 19 20

21 22 23 24 25 26 27

28 29 30 31

1. Did this operation have anyone on the payroll to do agricultural work the week of October 7th through October 13th?

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• All hired workers regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, daily, monthly, piece rate, etc.)

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

600

1 ☐ Yes [Continue]

3 ☐ No [Go to page 6]

2 ☐ Don't Know [Go to page 6]

2. How many workers did you have on payroll to do agricultural work the week of October 7th 

through October 13th?....................................................................................................................

3. In 2018, how many of these total paid workers for that week will be paid by this operation for 

150 days or more of work?.............................................................................................................

10

599

Office Use Only

660

TOTAL NUMBER

700

NUMBER OF 

WORKERS
4

Section 1 - PAID WORKERS for October (continued)

4. Fill out the table below for the workers paid to do agricultural work the week of October 7th through October 13th. 

Report workers who fall under the same worker code on a single line.

➢ Record each worker only once

➢ Report only one week of hours and wages for the reference week

➢ Base wages include the minimum amount paid regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece rate, etc.) but

exclude bonus and overtime pay

➢ Bonus pay includes performance pay, hazard pay, other regularly paid bonuses, etc. that are paid in addition to the

base wages

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation) (include typical hours and wages for the week)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

Enter the 

Worker 

Code from 

Page 5

Number of 

Paid 

Workers 

That Week

Total 

Hours 

Worked 

That Week

How many of the Total 

Hours Worked that 

week were....

Total 

Gross 

Wages

paid that 

week

(Dollars)

How much of the Total Gross Wages 

Paid that week were...

Total Base 

Hours

Total 

Overtime 

Hours

Total Base 

Wages

Total 

Bonus 

Wages

Total 

Overtime 

Wages

Examples: 

12 60 3,000 3,000 0 42,000 36,000 6,000 0

31 1 40 40 0 800 800 0 0

32 2 100 90 10 1,630 1,395 0 235

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

Office Use Only Use – Completion Code - Usability

1 – Incomplete, Has Labor 698

2 – Incomplete, Unknown 

3 – No Labor
5

Worker Code for Sections 1 and 2

Code Work Hired to Do

FIELD WORKERS

11 Agricultural Equipment Operators - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse:

Drive and control farm equipment to till soil and to plant, cultivate, and harvest crops.

12

Farmworkers - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse:

Manually plant, cultivate, and harvest vegetables, fruits, nuts, horticultural specialties, field crops, Christmas trees and short rotation woody crops. 

Use hand tools, such as shovels, trowels, hoes, tampers, pruning hooks, shears, and knives. Duties may include tilling soil and applying fertilizers; 

transplanting, weeding, thinning, or pruning crops; applying pesticides; or cleaning, grading, sorting, packing, and loading harvested products.May 

construct trellises, repair fences and farm buildings, or participate in irrigation activities.

13 Graders And Sorters - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse Products:

Grade, sort, or classify agricultural crops by size, weight, color or condition.

14 Hand Packers And Packagers - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse Products:

Pack or package by hand a wide variety of products and materials.

15 All Other Field Workers:

All agricultural workers working with crops, nursery or greenhouse products not included in codes 11-14.

LIVESTOCK WORKERS

20 Agricultural Equipment Operators – Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals: Drive and control heavy farm equipment while 

attending to live farm, ranch, or aquacultural animals and in harvest of unprocessed animal products.

21

Farmworkers - Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals: Attend to live farm, ranch, or aquacultural animals including cattle, sheep, 

swine, goats, horses and other equines, poultry, finfish, shellfish, and bees. Duties may include feeding, watering, herding, milking, grazing, 

castrating, branding, de-beaking, weighing, catching, and loading animals. May conduct simple exams; maintain records; assist in births; and 

administer medications, vaccinations, or insecticides. May clean and maintain animal housing areas.

22 Graders And Sorters - Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animal Products:

Grade, sort, or classify unprocessed food and other agricultural products by size, weight, color, or condition.

23 Hand Packers And Packagers - Farm, Ranch and Aquacultural Animal Products:

Pack or package by hand a wide variety of products and materials.

24 All Other Livestock Workers:

All agricultural workers working with farm, ranch and aquacultural animals or products not included in codes 20 – 23.

SUPERVISORS

31

Farmers, Ranchers and Other Agricultural Managers:

Plan, direct, or coordinate the management or operation of farms, ranches, greenhouses, aquacultural operations, nurseries, tree farms, or other 

agricultural establishments.

32 First-Line Supervisors of Farm Workers:

Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of agricultural, aquacultural, and related workers.

OTHER WORKERS

41

Agricultural Inspectors:

Inspect agricultural commodities, processing equipment and facilities, and aquacultural operations, to ensure compliance with regulations and 

laws governing health, quality, and safety.

42 Animal Breeders:

Select and breed animals according to their genealogy, characteristics, and offspring.

43

Pesticide Handlers and Sprayers:

Mix or apply pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or insecticides through sprays, dusts, vapors, soil incorporation, or chemical application to all crops 

including nursery and greenhouse products and facilities, and livestock, and livestock facilities. Usually requires specific training and state or 

federal certification. Excludes pilots who dust or spray crops from aircraft.

44

Any Other Worker Not Listed Above:

Including, but not limited to, mechanics, shop workers, truck drivers, accountants, bookkeepers, office workers. Excluding contract & custom 

workers, retail workers, and “value-added” workers.
6

Section 2 - PAID WORKERS for July

July 2018

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30 31

1. Did this operation have anyone on the payroll to do agricultural work the week of July 8th through July 14th?

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• All hired workers regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, daily, monthly, piece rate, etc.)

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

600

1 ☐ Yes [Continue]

3 ☐ No [Go to page 8]

2 ☐ Don't Know [Go to page 8]

2. How many workers did you have on payroll to do agricultural work the week of July 8th through 

July 14th?.......................................................................................................................................

3. In 2018, how many of these total paid workers for that week will be paid by this operation for 

150 days or more of work?.............................................................................................................

7

599

Office Use Only

660

TOTAL NUMBER

700

NUMBER OF 

WORKERS
7

Section 2 - PAID WORKERS for July (continued)

4. Fill out the table below for the workers paid to do agricultural work the week of July 8th through July 14th. Report 

workers who fall under the same worker code on a single line.

➢ Record each worker only once

➢ Report only one week of hours and wages for the reference week

➢ Base wages include the minimum amount paid regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece rate, etc.) but

exclude bonus and overtime pay

➢ Bonus pay includes performance pay, hazard pay, other regularly paid bonuses, etc. that are paid in addition to the

base wages

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation) (include typical hours and wages for the week)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

Enter the 

Worker 

Code from 

Page 5

Number of 

Paid 

Workers 

That Week

Total 

Hours 

Worked 

That Week

How many of the Total 

Hours Worked that 

week were....

Total 

Gross 

Wages

paid that 

week

(Dollars)

How much of the Total Gross Wages 

Paid that week were...

Total Base 

Hours

Total 

Overtime 

Hours

Total Base 

Wages

Total 

Bonus 

Wages

Total 

Overtime 

Wages

Examples:

12 60 3,000 3,000 0 42,000 36,000 6,000 0

31 1 40 40 0 800 800 0 0

32 2 100 90 10 1,630 1,395 0 235

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

Office Use Only Use – Completion Code - Usability

1 – Incomplete, Has Labor 698

2 – Incomplete, Unknown 

3 – No Labor
8

Section 3 - PAID WORKERS in 2018

1. During 2018, what was or will be the largest number of hired workers on the payroll on any one day?

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• All hired workers regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, daily, monthly, piece rate, etc.)

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers........................................................278

None

3 ☐

2. During 2018, did or will this operation have any H-2A temporary agricultural workers on the payroll?

The H-2A program allows agricultural employers who anticipate a shortage of domestic workers to bring non 

immigrant foreign workers to the U.S. to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature.

279

1 ☐ Yes

3 ☐ No

2 ☐ Don't Know

277

Largest Number of 

Workers in 2018
9

Section 4 - VALUE of SALES

1. Please classify this operation in terms of total gross value of sales 

(Be sure sales represent only 2017 and earlier years’ production.)

Considering: • Sales of all crops, livestock, poultry, and livestock products (milk, eggs, etc.) sold in 2017.

• The value of product removed for all crops, livestock, and poultry produced under contract in 2017.

• Sales of all miscellaneous agricultural products in 2017.

• All government agricultural payments received in 2017.

• Landlord’s share of government payments and crops sold in 2017.

a. What code represents total gross value of sales, including government agricultural payments?

Total Value GVS Code

'None' during 2017.................................... 99 ☐

$ 1 ----- $ 999 ..... 1 ☐

$ 1,000 ----- $ 2,499 ..... 2 ☐

$ 2,500 ----- $ 4,999 ..... 3 ☐

$ 5,000 ----- $ 9,999 ..... 4 ☐ GVS Code

$ 10,000 ----- $ 24,999 ..... 5 ☐ 550

$ 25,000 ----- $ 49,999 ..... 6 ☐

$ 50,000 ---- -$ 99,999 ..... 7 ☐

$ 100,000 ----- $ 249,999 ..... 8 ☐

$ 250,000 ----- $ 499,999 ..... 9 ☐

$ 500,000 ----- $ 999,999 ..... 10 ☐

$ 1,000,000 ----- $ 2,499,999 ..... 11 ☐

$ 2,500,000 ----- $ 4,999,999 ..... 12 ☐

$ 5,000,000 and over .............

13 ☐

b. Does the GVS (gross value of sales) Code in Code Box 550 equal to '1' or '99'?

☐ Yes - (Continue) ☐ No - (Go to page 10, Item 2.)

c. Record all 2018 crops, land uses, and livestock or poultry now on the total acres operated, then go to page 10, Item 2.

Land Use

Field Crops Intended For 

Harvest Other Crops ACRES

CRP/WRP .......................................... ... Cut Christmas Trees

Idle Cropland ..................................... ... .. .

Summer Fallow ................................. ... ...

........................... ... ...

Livestock NUMBER

Government Payments

WHOLE 

DOLLARS Fruits/Nuts ACRES Cattle – Dairy................

CRP/WRP Payments ........................... ... Cattle – Other................

Other Gov’t Payments .......................... ... Chickens.......................

... Hogs..............................

Pasture/Rangeland ... Horses...........................

ACRES ... Mules/Burros ..................

Cropland Used Only For Pasture ...

Permanent Pasture ....................... Vegetables/Melons ACRES ...

Woodland Pasture ......................... ... ...

... ...

Aquaculture NUMBER ... Office Use

Acres of Ponds in Use ..................... TOTAL POINTS

Foodsize/Stockers ............................ Berries ACRES 552

Fingerlings/Broodfish ....................... ... PASTURE POINTS

Trout Eggs .......................................... ... 554

ACRES ACRES
10

Section 4 - VALUE of SALES (continued)

2. Of the farm or ranch income reported, which of these categories represents the largest portion of the gross income 

from this operation?

Code

1 – Grains, Oilseeds, Dry Beans, and Dry Peas .........................................................

(corn, flaxseed, grain silage and forage, grains and oilseeds, popcorn, rice, 1 ☐

small grains, sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers, straw, etc.)

2 – Tobacco ................................................................................................................... 2 ☐

3 – Cotton and Cottonseed .......................................................................................... 3 ☐

4 – Vegetables, Melons, Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes .............................................

(beets, cabbage, cantaloupes, pumpkins, sweet corn, 4 ☐

tomatoes, watermelons, vegetable seeds, etc.)

5 – Fruit, Tree Nuts and Berries ..................................................................................

(almonds, apples, blueberries, cherries, grapes, hazelnuts, kiwifruit, 5 ☐

oranges, pears, pecans, strawberries, walnuts, etc.)

6 – Nursery, Greenhouse, Floriculture and Sod .........................................................

(bedding plants, bulbs, cut flowers, flower seeds, foliage plants, 6 ☐

mushrooms, nursery potted plants, shrubbery, sod, etc.)

7 – Cut Christmas Trees and Short Rotation Woody Crops ..................................... 7 ☐

8 – Other Crops and Hay, CRP and Pasture ...............................................................

(grass seed, hay and grass silage, hops, maple syrup, mint, 8 ☐

peanuts, sugarcane, sugarbeets, CRP, etc.)

9 – Hogs and Pigs ......................................................................................................... 9 ☐

10 – Milk and Other Dairy Products from Cows ............................................................ 10 ☐

11 – Cattle and Calves ....................................................................................................

(beef and dairy cattle for breeding stock, fed cattle, beef and dairy cull animals, 

stockers and feeders, veal calves, etc.)

11 ☐

12 – Sheep, Goats, and their Products ..........................................................................12 (wool, mohair, milk and cheese)

13 – Horses, Ponies, and Mules ....................................................................................

(burros and donkeys)

14 – Poultry and Eggs ....................................................................................................

(broilers, chickens, turkeys, ducks, eggs, emus, geese, hatchlings, 

ostriches, pigeons, pheasants, quail, poultry products, etc.)

13 ☐

14 ☐

15 – Aquaculture..............................................................................................................15 (catfish, trout, ornamental and other fish, mollusks, crustaceans, etc.)

16 – Other Animals and Other Animal Products ..........................................................

(honey bees, honey, rabbits, fur-bearing animals, semen, manure, 

other animal specialties, etc.)

16 ☐

551

Farm Type 

Code

☐

☐
11

Section 5 - CHANGE in OPERATOR

Complete this section only if you answered “NO” for all questions in item 2 on the face page.

1. Has the operation named on the label been sold, rented, or turned over to someone else?

☐ Yes - (Go to item 2) ☐ No - (Go to a.)

2. Please provide the following information for the operation that has taken over the land:

Operation Name: 

Operator Name: 

Address:

City: State: Zip:

Phone: ( ) -

3. Was this new operation, reported in item 2, in business before June 1, 2018?

☐ Yes - [Go to page 12.] ☐ No -[Continue.]

4. Is this new operation managed?

☐ Yes - [Go to page 12.] ☐ No -[Continue.]

5. Were any individuals associated with the new operation, reported in item 2 above, operating land 

individually before June 1, 2018?

☐ Yes - [Go to page 12.] ☐ No - [Go to page 12.]

(Regardless of answer to above, write a note to explain 

the situation, then go to page 12.)

☐ Yes ☐ Don't Know ☐ No

a. Will the land be used for any agricultural purpose by 

you (the operator), or anyone else in the next year? 

(INCLUDE growing crops or raising livestock.)
12

Section 6 - CONCLUSION

1. Do you (the operator named on the label) make any day-to-day decisions for another farm orranch?

☐ Yes - Continue ☐ No - Go to Item 3

a. What is the name of the other operation(s)? .....

[ENUMERATOR NOTE: IF ADDITIONAL OPERATION IS INDIVIDUAL OR PARTNERSHIP, answer item 2

below and complete a separate questionnaire for the additional operation.]

2. Was this additional operation in business before June 1, 2018?

☐ Yes - Continue ☐ No - Continue

Comments:

3. Survey Results: To receive the complete results of this survey on the release date go to

www.nass.usda.gov/Surveys/Guide_to_NASS_Surveys/

To have a brief summary emailed to you at a 

later date, please enter your email address.

Would you rather have a brief summary mailed to you at a later date? 1 ☐ Yes 3 ☐ No

Respondent Name:

9911

Phone:

9910

Date:

MM DD YY

Thank you for your help

OFFICE USE ONLY

Response Respondent Mode Enum. Eval. Change Office Use for POID

1-Comp 

2-R

3-Inac

4-Office Hold 

5-R – Est

6-Inac – Est

7-Off Hold – Est

9901 1-Op/Mgr 

2-Sp

3-Acct/Bkpr 

4-Partner

9-Oth

9902 1-PASI (Mail)

2-PATI (Tel)

3-PAPI (Faceto-Face) 

6-e-mail

7-Fax 

19-Other

9903 9998 9900 9985 9989

 - - 

Optional Use

9907 9908 9906 9916

S/E Name

Operation Name: 

Address:

City: State: ZIP: 

Phone: ( ) 

9990

1095
34

APPENDIX B: ROUND 2 QUESTIONNAIRE
AGRICULTURAL LABOR SURVEY – OCTOBER 2018 9/27/18v2

OMB No. 0535-0109

Approval Expires: 3/31/2021 

Project Code: 956

SurveyId: 4012

USDA/NASS

United States 

Department of 

Agriculture

NATIONAL 

AGRICULTURAL 

STATISTICS 

SERVICE

National Operations Division 

9700 Page Avenue, Suite 400 

St. Louis, MO 63132-1547 

Phone: 1-888-424-7828

Fax: 1-855-415-3687

E-mail: nass@nass.usda.gov

Please make corrections to name, address and ZIP Code, if necessary.

The information you provide will be used for statistical purposes only. Your responses will be kept confidential and any person who willfully discloses ANY 

identifiable information about you or your operation is subject to a jail term, a fine, or both. This survey is conducted in accordance with the Confidential 

Information Protection provisions of Title V, Subtitle A, Public Law 107-347 and other applicable Federal laws. For more information on how we protect your 

information please visit: https://www.nass.usda.gov/confidentiality. Response to this survey is voluntary.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of 

information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number is 0535-0109. The time required to complete this information 

collection is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and 

maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

State POID Tract Subtr.

1. [Verify name and mailing address of this operation. Make any corrections 

necessary (including the correct operation name) on the label and continue.]

2. Since June 1, 2018 have you or will you (name on label)--

a. grow any crops or cut hay?

☐ [Check if name label verified]

[INCLUDE grains, row crops, oilseeds, fruits, nuts, vegetables (including strawberries and melon crops), nursery 

and greenhouse, Christmas trees, and other specialty crops.]

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

b. own or raise any livestock, poultry, bees or aquaculture?

[INCLUDE livestock and poultry owned, and any being raised under contract for someone else.]

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

c. sell any agricultural products?

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

d. receive government agricultural payments?

[EXCLUDE government payments received as a landlord.]

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Continue]

e. have more than 19 acres of idle cropland or more than 99 acres of pastureland?

1 ☐ Yes [Go to page 2] 3 ☐ No [Go to page 11]
2

3. Are the day-to-day decisions for this operation made by one individual, 

a hired manager, or partners? [Check one]

☐ One individual - [Go to Section 1 on page 3.]

☐ A hired manager - [Go to Section 1 on page 3.]

☐ Partners - (Continue)

How many individuals are involved in the day-to-day decisions of this operation? 

(Enter the number of partners.) ......................................................................................

Include the partner named on the label. Partners jointly operate land and share in decision making. Do not include 

landlords and tenants as partners.

4. Please identify the other person(s) in this partnership, then go to Section 1, page 3.

[Verify partners' names and make necessary corrections if names have already been entered.]

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9922

Ind. Op.

9924

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9923

Ind. Op.

9924

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9927

Ind. Op.

9924

For Office Use Only

Stratum

9928

Ind. Op.

9924

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

☐ Yes ☐ No

Did this partner also operate land individually on 

June 1, 2018?

Phone: ( ) -

Name:

Address:

City: State: Zip:

Number

For Office Use Only

R. Unit

9921

June 1

9930

Subst

9941
3

Section 1 - PAID WORKERS for October

October 2018

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16 17 18 19 20

21 22 23 24 25 26 27

28 29 30 31

1. Did this operation have anyone on the payroll to do agricultural work the week of October 7th through October 13th?

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation, regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece 

rate, etc).

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

600

1 ☐ Yes [Continue]

3 ☐ No [Go to page 6]

2 ☐ Don't Know [Go to page 6]

2. How many workers did you have on payroll to do agricultural work the week of October 7th 

through October 13th?....................................................................................................................

3. In 2018, how many of these total paid workers for that week will be paid by this operation for 

150 days or more of work?.............................................................................................................

10

599

Office Use Only

660

TOTAL NUMBER

700

NUMBER OF 

WORKERS
4

Section 1 - PAID WORKERS for October (continued)

4. Fill out the table below for the workers paid to do agricultural work the week of October 7th through October 13th. 

Report workers who fall under the same worker code on a single line.

➢ Record each worker only once

➢ Report only one week of hours and wages for the reference week

➢ Base wages are the minimum amount paid excluding bonus and overtime pay

➢ Bonus pay includes performance pay, hazard pay, other regularly paid bonuses, etc. that are paid in addition to the

base wages

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation, regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece 

rate, etc).

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation) (include typical hours and wages for the week)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

Enter the 

Worker 

Code from 

Page 5

Number of 

Paid 

Workers 

That Week

Total 

Hours 

Worked 

That Week

How many of the Total 

Hours Worked that 

week were....

Total 

Gross 

Wages

paid that 

week

(Dollars)

How much of the Total Gross Wages 

Paid that week were...

Total Base 

Hours

Total 

Overtime 

Hours

Total Base 

Wages

Total 

Bonus 

Wages

Total 

Overtime 

Wages

Examples: 

12 60 3,000 3,000 0 42,000 36,000 6,000 0

31 1 40 40 0 800 800 0 0

32 2 100 90 10 1,630 1,395 0 235

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

Office Use Only Use – Completion Code - Usability

1 – Incomplete, Has Labor 698

2 – Incomplete, Unknown 

3 – No Labor
5

Worker Code for Sections 1 and 2

Code Work Hired to Do

FIELD WORKERS

11 Agricultural Equipment Operators - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse:

Drive and control farm equipment to till soil and to plant, cultivate, and harvest crops.

12

Farmworkers - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse:

Manually plant, cultivate, and harvest vegetables, fruits, nuts, horticultural specialties, field crops, Christmas trees and short rotation woody crops. 

Use hand tools, such as shovels, trowels, hoes, tampers, pruning hooks, shears, and knives. Duties may include tilling soil and applying fertilizers; 

transplanting, weeding, thinning, or pruning crops; applying pesticides; or cleaning, grading, sorting, packing, and loading harvested products.May 

construct trellises, repair fences and farm buildings, or participate in irrigation activities.

13 Graders And Sorters - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse Products:

Grade, sort, or classify agricultural crops by size, weight, color or condition.

14 Hand Packers And Packagers - Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse Products:

Pack or package by hand a wide variety of products and materials.

15 All Other Field Workers:

All agricultural workers working with crops, nursery or greenhouse products not included in codes 11-14.

LIVESTOCK WORKERS

20 Agricultural Equipment Operators – Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals: Drive and control heavy farm equipment while 

attending to live farm, ranch, or aquacultural animals and in harvest of unprocessed animal products.

21

Farmworkers - Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals: Attend to live farm, ranch, or aquacultural animals including cattle, sheep, 

swine, goats, horses and other equines, poultry, finfish, shellfish, and bees. Duties may include feeding, watering, herding, milking, grazing, 

castrating, branding, de-beaking, weighing, catching, and loading animals. May conduct simple exams; maintain records; assist in births; and 

administer medications, vaccinations, or insecticides. May clean and maintain animal housing areas.

22 Graders And Sorters - Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animal Products:

Grade, sort, or classify unprocessed food and other agricultural products by size, weight, color, or condition.

23 Hand Packers And Packagers - Farm, Ranch and Aquacultural Animal Products:

Pack or package by hand a wide variety of products and materials.

24 All Other Livestock Workers:

All agricultural workers working with farm, ranch and aquacultural animals or products not included in codes 20 – 23.

SUPERVISORS

31

Farmers, Ranchers and Other Agricultural Managers:

Plan, direct, or coordinate the management or operation of farms, ranches, greenhouses, aquacultural operations, nurseries, tree farms, or other 

agricultural establishments.

32 First-Line Supervisors of Farm Workers:

Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of agricultural, aquacultural, and related workers.

OTHER WORKERS

41

Agricultural Inspectors:

Inspect agricultural commodities, processing equipment and facilities, and aquacultural operations, to ensure compliance with regulations and 

laws governing health, quality, and safety.

42 Animal Breeders:

Select and breed animals according to their genealogy, characteristics, and offspring.

43

Pesticide Handlers and Sprayers:

Mix or apply pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or insecticides through sprays, dusts, vapors, soil incorporation, or chemical application to all crops 

including nursery and greenhouse products and facilities, and livestock, and livestock facilities. Usually requires specific training and state or 

federal certification. Excludes pilots who dust or spray crops from aircraft.

44

Any Other Worker Not Listed Above:

Including, but not limited to, mechanics, shop workers, truck drivers, accountants, bookkeepers, office workers. Excluding contract & custom 

workers, retail workers, and “value-added” workers.
6

Section 2 - PAID WORKERS for July

July 2018

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30 31

1. Did this operation have anyone on the payroll to do agricultural work the week of July 8th through July 14th?

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation, regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece 

rate, etc).

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

600

1 ☐ Yes [Continue]

3 ☐ No [Go to page 8]

2 ☐ Don't Know [Go to page 8]

2. How many workers did you have on payroll to do agricultural work the week of July 8th through 

July 14th?.......................................................................................................................................

3. In 2018, how many of these total paid workers for that week will be paid by this operation for 

150 days or more of work?.............................................................................................................

7

599

Office Use Only

660

TOTAL NUMBER

700

NUMBER OF 

WORKERS
7

Section 2 - PAID WORKERS for July (continued)

4. Fill out the table below for the workers paid to do agricultural work the week of July 8th through July 14th. Report 

workers who fall under the same worker code on a single line.

➢ Record each worker only once

➢ Report only one week of hours and wages for the reference week

➢ Base wages are the minimum amount paid excluding bonus and overtime pay

➢ Bonus pay includes performance pay, hazard pay, other regularly paid bonuses, etc. that are paid in addition to the

base wages

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation, regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, piece 

rate, etc).

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation) (include typical hours and wages for the week)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers

Enter the 

Worker 

Code from 

Page 5

Number of 

Paid 

Workers 

That Week

Total 

Hours 

Worked 

That Week

How many of the Total 

Hours Worked that 

week were....

Total 

Gross 

Wages

paid that 

week

(Dollars)

How much of the Total Gross Wages 

Paid that week were...

Total Base 

Hours

Total 

Overtime 

Hours

Total Base 

Wages

Total 

Bonus 

Wages

Total 

Overtime 

Wages

Examples:

12 60 3,000 3,000 0 42,000 36,000 6,000 0

31 1 40 40 0 800 800 0 0

32 2 100 90 10 1,630 1,395 0 235

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

611 612 613 xxx xxx 614 620 627 628

Office Use Only Use – Completion Code - Usability

1 – Incomplete, Has Labor 698

2 – Incomplete, Unknown 

3 – No Labor
8

Section 3 - PAID WORKERS in 2018

1. During 2018, what was or will be the largest number of hired workers on the payroll on any one day?

INCLUDE:

• Workers directly hired and paid by the farm operation, regardless of method of pay (salaried, hourly, 

piece rate, etc).

• Part-time workers, paid family members, and hired managers

• Workers on paid leave (sick or vacation)

EXCLUDE:

• H-2A workers

• Contract and custom workers

• Retail workers and "value-added" workers........................................................278

None

3 ☐

2. During 2018, did or will this operation have any H-2A temporary agricultural workers on the payroll?

The H-2A program allows agricultural employers who anticipate a shortage of domestic workers to bring non 

immigrant foreign workers to the U.S. to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature.

279

1 ☐ Yes

3 ☐ No

2 ☐ Don't Know

277

Largest Number of 

Workers in 2018
9

Section 4 - VALUE of SALES

1. Please classify this operation in terms of total gross value of sales 

(Be sure sales represent only 2017 and earlier years’ production.)

Considering: • Sales of all crops, livestock, poultry, and livestock products (milk, eggs, etc.) sold in 2017.

• The value of product removed for all crops, livestock, and poultry produced under contract in 2017.

• Sales of all miscellaneous agricultural products in 2017.

• All government agricultural payments received in 2017.

• Landlord’s share of government payments and crops sold in 2017.

a. What code represents total gross value of sales, including government agricultural payments?

Total Value GVS Code

'None' during 2017.................................... 99 ☐

$ 1 ----- $ 999 ..... 1 ☐

$ 1,000 ----- $ 2,499 ..... 2 ☐

$ 2,500 ----- $ 4,999 ..... 3 ☐

$ 5,000 ----- $ 9,999 ..... 4 ☐ GVS Code

$ 10,000 ----- $ 24,999 ..... 5 ☐ 550

$ 25,000 ----- $ 49,999 ..... 6 ☐

$ 50,000 ---- -$ 99,999 ..... 7 ☐

$ 100,000 ----- $ 249,999 ..... 8 ☐

$ 250,000 ----- $ 499,999 ..... 9 ☐

$ 500,000 ----- $ 999,999 ..... 10 ☐

$ 1,000,000 ----- $ 2,499,999 ..... 11 ☐

$ 2,500,000 ----- $ 4,999,999 ..... 12 ☐

$ 5,000,000 and over .............

13 ☐

b. Does the GVS (gross value of sales) Code in Code Box 550 equal to '1' or '99'?

☐ Yes - (Continue) ☐ No - (Go to page 10, Item 2.)

c. Record all 2018 crops, land uses, and livestock or poultry now on the total acres operated, then go to page 10, Item 2.

Land Use

Field Crops Intended For 

Harvest Other Crops ACRES

CRP/WRP .......................................... ... Cut Christmas Trees

Idle Cropland ..................................... ... .. .

Summer Fallow ................................. ... ...

........................... ... ...

Livestock NUMBER

Government Payments

WHOLE 

DOLLARS Fruits/Nuts ACRES Cattle – Dairy................

CRP/WRP Payments ........................... ... Cattle – Other................

Other Gov’t Payments .......................... ... Chickens.......................

... Hogs..............................

Pasture/Rangeland ... Horses...........................

ACRES ... Mules/Burros ..................

Cropland Used Only For Pasture ...

Permanent Pasture ....................... Vegetables/Melons ACRES ...

Woodland Pasture ......................... ... ...

... ...

Aquaculture NUMBER ... Office Use

Acres of Ponds in Use ..................... TOTAL POINTS

Foodsize/Stockers ............................ Berries ACRES 552

Fingerlings/Broodfish ....................... ... PASTURE POINTS

Trout Eggs .......................................... ... 554

ACRES ACRES
10

Section 4 - VALUE of SALES (continued)

2. Of the farm or ranch income reported, which of these categories represents the largest portion of the gross income 

from this operation?

Code

1 – Grains, Oilseeds, Dry Beans, and Dry Peas .........................................................

(corn, flaxseed, grain silage and forage, grains and oilseeds, popcorn, rice, 1 ☐

small grains, sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers, straw, etc.)

2 – Tobacco ................................................................................................................... 2 ☐

3 – Cotton and Cottonseed .......................................................................................... 3 ☐

4 – Vegetables, Melons, Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes .............................................

(beets, cabbage, cantaloupes, pumpkins, sweet corn, 4 ☐

tomatoes, watermelons, vegetable seeds, etc.)

5 – Fruit, Tree Nuts and Berries ..................................................................................

(almonds, apples, blueberries, cherries, grapes, hazelnuts, kiwifruit, 5 ☐

oranges, pears, pecans, strawberries, walnuts, etc.)

6 – Nursery, Greenhouse, Floriculture and Sod .........................................................

(bedding plants, bulbs, cut flowers, flower seeds, foliage plants, 6 ☐

mushrooms, nursery potted plants, shrubbery, sod, etc.)

7 – Cut Christmas Trees and Short Rotation Woody Crops ..................................... 7 ☐

8 – Other Crops and Hay, CRP and Pasture ...............................................................

(grass seed, hay and grass silage, hops, maple syrup, mint, 8 ☐

peanuts, sugarcane, sugarbeets, CRP, etc.)

9 – Hogs and Pigs ......................................................................................................... 9 ☐

10 – Milk and Other Dairy Products from Cows ............................................................ 10 ☐

11 – Cattle and Calves ....................................................................................................

(beef and dairy cattle for breeding stock, fed cattle, beef and dairy cull animals, 

stockers and feeders, veal calves, etc.)

11 ☐

12 – Sheep, Goats, and their Products ..........................................................................12 (wool, mohair, milk and cheese)

13 – Horses, Ponies, and Mules ....................................................................................

(burros and donkeys)

14 – Poultry and Eggs ....................................................................................................

(broilers, chickens, turkeys, ducks, eggs, emus, geese, hatchlings, 

ostriches, pigeons, pheasants, quail, poultry products, etc.)

13 ☐

14 ☐

15 – Aquaculture..............................................................................................................15 (catfish, trout, ornamental and other fish, mollusks, crustaceans, etc.)

16 – Other Animals and Other Animal Products ..........................................................

(honey bees, honey, rabbits, fur-bearing animals, semen, manure, 

other animal specialties, etc.)

16 ☐

551

Farm Type 

Code

☐

☐
11

Section 5 - CHANGE in OPERATOR

Complete this section only if you answered “NO” for all questions in item 2 on the face page.

1. Has the operation named on the label been sold, rented, or turned over to someone else?

☐ Yes - (Go to item 2) ☐ No - (Go to a.)

2. Please provide the following information for the operation that has taken over the land:

Operation Name: 

Operator Name: 

Address:

City: State: Zip:

Phone: ( ) -

3. Was this new operation, reported in item 2, in business before June 1, 2018?

☐ Yes - [Go to page 12.] ☐ No -[Continue.]

4. Is this new operation managed?

☐ Yes - [Go to page 12.] ☐ No -[Continue.]

5. Were any individuals associated with the new operation, reported in item 2 above, operating land 

individually before June 1, 2018?

☐ Yes - [Go to page 12.] ☐ No - [Go to page 12.]

(Regardless of answer to above, write a note to explain 

the situation, then go to page 12.)

☐ Yes ☐ Don't Know ☐ No

a. Will the land be used for any agricultural purpose by 

you (the operator), or anyone else in the next year? 

(INCLUDE growing crops or raising livestock.)
12

Section 6 - CONCLUSION

1. Do you (the operator named on the label) make any day-to-day decisions for another farm orranch?

☐ Yes - Continue ☐ No - Go to Item 3

a. What is the name of the other operation(s)? .....

[ENUMERATOR NOTE: IF ADDITIONAL OPERATION IS INDIVIDUAL OR PARTNERSHIP, answer item 2

below and complete a separate questionnaire for the additional operation.]

2. Was this additional operation in business before June 1, 2018?

☐ Yes - Continue ☐ No - Continue

Comments:

3. Survey Results: To receive the complete results of this survey on the release date go to

www.nass.usda.gov/Surveys/Guide_to_NASS_Surveys/

To have a brief summary emailed to you at a 

later date, please enter your email address.

Would you rather have a brief summary mailed to you at a later date? 1 ☐ Yes 3 ☐ No

Respondent Name:

9911

Phone:

9910

Date:

MM DD YY

Thank you for your help

OFFICE USE ONLY

Response Respondent Mode Enum. Eval. Change Office Use for POID

1-Comp 

2-R

3-Inac

4-Office Hold 

5-R – Est

6-Inac – Est

7-Off Hold – Est

9901 1-Op/Mgr 

2-Sp

3-Acct/Bkpr 

4-Partner

9-Oth

9902 1-PASI (Mail)

2-PATI (Tel)

3-PAPI (Faceto-Face) 

6-e-mail

7-Fax 

19-Other

9903 9998 9900 9985 9989

 - - 

Optional Use

9907 9908 9906 9916

S/E Name

Operation Name: 

Address:

City: State: ZIP: 

Phone: ( ) 

9990

1095