Who Employs Farmworkers?
Many farmworkers are hired to work on farms through intermediaries, often called “farm labor contractors” or “crewleaders.” Some of these labor contractors are quite large and have subcontractors. In some instances, the roles of labor contractors are narrow. Some may transport workers; some may recruit and hire job applicants; some supervise the workers in the fields. At times, farm operators claim that they don’t “employ” any of the farmworkers who harvest the crops on their farms, and that a labor contractor is the sole “employer” of the farmworkers. In this way, some farm operators hope to avoid the responsibilities that “employers” have to pay the minimum wage, provide safe working environments, offer workers’ compensation insurance coverage, and negotiate in good faith with a labor union.
