Source: NPR
The workforce in farms in the U.S. has over the years been reduced to workers who are over the age of 60, since the workforce used to be made up of a young population of farm workers immigrating from Mexico that no longer exists.
New barriers over the years have left an older workforce with the backbreaking field work since younger workers are no longer desperate for the low-paying, strenuous jobs as field workers.
Older farm workers who continue to work in the fields have face increasing health problems over the years as they work 12-hour work days and can barely afford to visit a doctor.
Additionally, the low-paying job often forces workers to forfeit visiting the doctor for any reason because it likely means a day of income is lost, which also means they end up facing more severe medical problems.
Read Full Story: NPR