Often, their workdays begin before dawn. Long-term consequences of pesticide poisoning include cancer, brain damage, and learning and memory problems. Many young farmworkers are forced to work without access to toilet facilities, handwashing facilities, and adequate drinking water, the three most basic sanitation requirements. The lack of handwashing facilities contributes to pesticide poisoning and bacterial infections, while the lack of adequate drinking water can lead to dehydration and heat illness. Children often work in fields where the temperature is well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
Children working in agriculture suffer a high rate of injuries from knives and heavy equipment.
Child farmworkers account for eight percent of all working minors, but suffer 40 percent of work-related fatalities among children. Long hours of work interfere with the education of children working in the fields. Statistically, only 55 percent of farmworker children in the United States finish high school. Of the dozens interviewed by Human Rights Watch, nearly every one had dropped out of school for at least one extended period of time. Young farmworkers are often cheated from receiving their rightful wages, and many earn far less than minimum wage.