After last year’s farm worker wage survey was flagged for investigation due to alleged bias from an industry group, the state has redesigned the survey with support from grower groups.
The voluntary survey, which seeks to estimate prevailing wages so that the federal contracts for H2-A guest workers can be set in line with those rates, was launched this week by the state Employment Security Department.
The 2015 results were called into questions after Wafla, a grower organization, advised members to report their minimum hourly wages instead of piece-rate wages, which allow skilled workers to earn more.
An investigation by the state Attorney General’s Office into whether Wafla’s guidance improperly tilted survey results toward lower wages continues.
This year’s survey clearly asks for both piece-rate wages and guaranteed hourly wages, in addition to standard questions about different work activities, the number of seasonal workers, bonuses, and other forms of compensation, such as provided housing.
“What we are interested in is what workers are actually being paid,” said Gustavo Aviles, ESD program manager. “What we tried to make more clear this iteration is that they are to report the rate they paid on the busiest week of the season. If they paid a piece-rate they should report that and if they paid an hourly rate, they should report that and how many workers they paid each rate.”
Wafla Executive Director Dan Fazio praised the survey redesign.
“They did a great job this year; the biggest improvement is that ESD took Wafla’s advice and is now separately surveying piece-rates and hourly wages,” he said. “What these means is that ag employers will now get credit for the high hourly wages they pay.”
Fazio declined to comment on the ongoing investigation, but he has maintained that there was nothing wrong with Wafla’s advice to growers last year. The federal guidelines for such surveys, which are required by the U.S. Department of Labor, say that piece-rate, hourly rate, and bonuses should all be surveyed, he said.
ESD is also planning more outreach to growers to explain the survey, Aviles said. The department posted a webinar on its website along with the survey and will do a webinar with Wafla as well, he said. Also, for the first time this year, the state plans to survey about 8,000 farm workers on wage rates and pay practices as well, Aviles said.
