Through a process of gathering primary and secondary data on the Salinas and Pajaro Valleys, the study team was been able to identify some specific needs, barriers and solutions to the farmworker housing crisis in Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties.
We undertook a thorough compilation and analysis of existing databases on agricultural trends and labor patterns in the region. From this research, we found that the estimated number of unique individual workers employed in the region during 2016 was 91,433. An estimated half of California’s current crop workers tell government interviewers they lack authorization for U.S. employment. And those who are documented are aging. Finally, the flow of foreign agricultural workers into the U.S. has declined sharply. Some employers report labor shortages. Intense efforts to mechanize every aspect of production are underway. Still other employers have sought H-2A workers to supplement their domestic workforce.
Most households of farmworkers included non-family members who were for the most part other farmworkers. There are consistently stunningly high rates of residences that are above the severely crowded condition of 2.0 people per room. This is true of almost all the subgroups of the population. About 40% of respondents live in houses, 30% in apartments. Another 19% live in rented rooms without kitchens — either in houses or apartments. Another 12% live in “other” types of dwellings. Eighty-nine percent of farmworkers were renters and 11% owners. Of those who reported as owners, a quarter own mobile homes.
This Study was funded by a collaboration of County and City governments, affordable housing developers, and nonprofit organizations in Salinas Valley and Pajaro Valley.