According to a national migrant farm worker enumeration study, there are approximately 30,000 migrant and seasonal farm workers and their dependents living and working in Palm Beach County. This makes the county the largest in number of agricultural laborers in the state of Florida, a traditional home base for migrant farm workers. Farm workers live in all parts of the county, but most are concentrated in the Glades area, around Lake Okeechobee. They work in the sugar cane fields, pick vegetables (such as lettuce, beans and sweet corn), and work in vegetable packing sheds, preparing agricultural products for the market.

Farm workers, especially those who live close to the coast, commute to fields (owned by large agricultural producers) where they harvest and prepare for market vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers. They also work with smaller crops such as celery, radishes, basil and other herbs. As more and more farmland near the coast is sold for real estate development by farms, more farm workers move westward to find jobs in other areas such as plant nurseries. Nursery work is considered agricultural work and many of the agency's clients on the coast are employed in nurseries.

Many farm workers live year round in Palm Beach County; others migrate north during the summer months to find work. The busy harvest season in Florida begins in October and, depending upon the crop, may end anytime from March to June. Many families remain in Florida during the summer months when there is little work in agriculture. They mostly rely upon unstable day labor or other temporary jobs to make ends meet. Still others depend upon family members who migrate north and send back their earnings to support the family. During these times, the Farmworker Council finds that their services are more heavily relied upon.

Palm Beach County farm workers come from many different backgrounds. Many newly arrived immigrants to Florida find work in agriculture. Most of these newcomers are from rural Mexico, Guatemala and Haiti. However, in the Glades area, many African American families have worked in agriculture for years.

Barriers faced by farm workers

Farm workers in Palm Beach County as well as throughout the United States live in dire poverty, lack basic services, and suffer from unfair labor practices. Although they greatly contribute to the agricultural economy of the country, they are not afforded many of the same legal protections as other workers in this country.

According to the National Agricultural Workers Survey, farm workers earn on average between $7,500 - $10,000 annually. Often, in Palm Beach County they are paid on a piece rate, earning their hourly salary is based on how many buckets of tomatoes or peppers they pick. When crops are not abundant, or there are too many pickers in the field, wages can sometimes fall below the legal minimum wage. Due to the temporary nature of agriculture, stable work is hard to come by and many farm workers travel one or two times a year to find work. This instability makes it difficult for families to establish roots in communities and creates isolation and decreases their ability to access services in areas where they are unfamiliar with their surroundings.

Not only do farm workers face dire poverty due to low wages and temporary unemployment, they do not receive the same employment benefits as other sectors of the economy. The vast majority are not afforded health insurance. In many states they are excluded from worker's compensation insurance if they are injured on the job. They do not receive vacation days and are excluded from overtime pay for work in the fields.

For many farm workers, English is a second language and many do not speak English at all. This causes yet another barrier in accessing services. In Palm Beach County farm workers may speak Spanish, Haitian Creole or one of 22 different Mayan languages. Despite the fact that federal regulations require government service agencies to provide equal access regardless of ethnic origin, many farm workers find it difficult to communicate with health department staff making it even more difficult to obtain basic services.

The Farmworker Council strives to address barriers faced by farm workers and recognizes the important economic and cultural contribution made by the community. The 'Access to Services' program strives to break down some of these barriers and the 'Family Empowerment' and 'Emergency Services' programs address poverty and isolation faced by so many farm workers. Finally, the 'Advocacy' programs seeks to address the systemic problems faced by farm workers in collaboration with local and national farm worker advocates.