Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-xfwgj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-05T22:48:04.510Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Migrant Farm Workers on Virginia's Eastern Shore: An Analysis of Economic Impacts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2015

Erin O. Sills
Affiliation:
Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
Jeffrey Alwang
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia
Paul Driscoll
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia

Abstract

The economic impact of migrant farmworkers on an agriculture-dependent region is investigated. The direct effects of inflows of state and federal dollars for migrant services, and production of high-valued commodities are computed. Indirect and induced effects are modelled through the use of the IMPLAN input output model. Various alternatives to migrant labor are investigated, including production of less labor-intensive crops, acreage retirement, and contract H2A workers. Migrants are found to create substantial economic activity on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 1994

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adams, Jeffrey L. and Severson, S.A.. “The Economic Impact of Migrant Labor on the Waushara County Economy,Mimeo, Beloit College, 1986.Google Scholar
Alward, G.S. and Lofting, E. M.. “Opportunities for Analyzing the Economic Impacts of Recreation and Tourism Expenditures Using IMPLAN.” Annual Meetings, Regional Science Association. Philadelphia, PA, 1985.Google Scholar
Alward, G. S., Davis, H. G., Despotakis, K. A., and Lofting, E. M., “Regional Non-Survey Input-Output Analysis with IMPLAN.” Presented at Southern Regional Science Association Annual Meetings, Washington, DC, 1985.Google Scholar
Bergstrom, John C., Cordell, M. Ken, Watson, Alan E., and Schley, Gregory A.. “Economic Impacts of State Parks on State Economies in the South.S. J. Agr. Econ., 22(2), 1990, pp. 6977.Google Scholar
Broomhall, David and Johnson, Thomas G., “Regional Impacts of the Conservation Reserve Program in the Southeast with Conversion to Trees: An Application of Input-Output Analysis,Rev. Reg. Stud., Vol. 20, 1991, pp. 7685. 1991.Google Scholar
Diem, J. Fred. “Crop Budget Guide: Eastern Shore.Northampton County: Virginia Cooperative Extension Service, 1986.Google Scholar
Griffith, David C. and Landau, D.. “Migrant Workers on the Eastern Seaboard: Delmarva Case Study,Mimeo, 1992.Google Scholar
Heppel, Monica L.Harvesting the Crops of Others: Migrant Farm Labor on the Eastern Shore of Virginia,” Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation, The American University, 1982.Google Scholar
Holliday, A. J., and Barnes, G. E., An Economic Profile of the Accomack-Northampton Planning District, Center for Public Service, Charlottesville: University of Virginia, 1990.Google Scholar
Martin, Michael, Radtke, Hans, Eleveld, Bart, and Nofzinger, S. Diane. “The Impacts of the Conservation Reserve Program on Rural Communities: The Case of Three Oregon Counties,W. J. Agr. Econ., 13(1988), pp. 225232, 1988.Google Scholar
Palmer, C. J., and Siverts, E. L.. Implan Analysis Guide. Land Management Planning Systems Section. USDA Forest Service, Ft. Collins, CO, 1985.Google Scholar
Stallmann, Judith I. and Pease, J. W.. “Virginia Farm Family Survey for 1988.” Department of Agricultural Economics, Virginia Tech, 1989 (unpublished).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. Survey of Current Business, April 1991(a).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. Summary Tape File 1A, South Atlantic Division (Vol.1), Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1991(b).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, unpublished data, Washington, D.C: Regional Economic Information System, 1990.Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. 1987 Census of Agriculture: Geographic Area Series. Virginia, Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1989(a).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. 1987 Census of Manufactures: Geographic Area Series, Virginia, Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1989(b).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. 1987 Census of Retail Trade: Geographic Area Series, Virginia, Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1989(c).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. 1987 Census of Service Industries: Geographic Area Series, Virginia, Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1989(d).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. 1987 Census of Wholesale Trade: Geographic Area Series, Virginia, Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1989(e).Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Commerce. 1982 Census of Agriculture: Geographic Area Series, Virginia, Washington, D.C: Bureau of the Census, 1984(f).Google Scholar
Virginia Employment Commission. Unpublished Employment Statistics, Richmond, Virginia, 1992.Google Scholar
Virginia Tech Department of Agricultural Economics, “Survey of Migrants,” (Mimeo), 1992.Google Scholar
Virginia Tech Department of Agricultural Economics, “Survey of Employers,” (Mimeo), 1992.Google Scholar