Michigan’s agricultural and food system generates an estimated $104.7 billion for the state each year. At the heart of this economic engine is a labor force made up largely of migrant and seasonal farmworkers. In 2013, nearly 94,000 individuals were estimated to have worked in Michigan’s fields and farms (MDCR, 2013).
Despite their essential contributions, many of these workers remain invisible in public policy—vulnerable to underpayment, unsafe working conditions, and limited legal protections. As the current workforce ages and declines, many farms increasingly rely on the H-2A guest worker program to fill labor gaps. While wages have seen modest increases, the deeper patterns of exploitation, instability, and systemic neglect remain unchanged.
Farmworkers often endure grueling conditions: Long hours, hazardous environments, wage theft or the constant threat of it, sudden dismissal, intense physical demands, verbal abuse, and limited access to clean water. Their well-being is tethered to unpredictable forces like the weather, crop yields, and shifting immigration policies—clear signs of a system that profits from their labor while denying their dignity.
Most farmworkers speak Spanish and have limited English proficiency. Many have received only six to seven years of formal education, and some cannot read or write in any language. Without access to reliable transportation and often living below the poverty line, they face significant barriers to healthcare, legal assistance, and basic services.
These individuals and families form the backbone of our local economy and food supply. Yet they continue to face systemic barriers to their most basic human and civil rights.
JPAC exists to bridge these gaps. We provide trusted, one-on-one support that is culturally and linguistically responsive—meeting people where they are: in the fields, clinics, homes, or hospitals. Our mission is rooted in honoring the dignity of those whose hands feed our communities and the world.
Sources
Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Enumeration Profiles Study
Michigan’s thousands of farmworkers are unprotected, poorly paid, uncounted and often exploited
