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The Exceptional One Percent: U.S. Farmworker and Business Owner

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  • Pisani, Michael J.
  • Guzman, Joseph M.

Abstract

This paper documents the exceptional confluence between employment as a U.S. farmworker and business owner. Hispanics compose the overall majority (79.7%) of U.S. farmworkers, with two-thirds (66.6%) of all farmworkers identifying as Mexican. Utilizing the National Agricultural Workers Survey conducted annually by the U.S. Department of Labor from 1989 to 2009, we explore the characteristics and determinants of these unique farmworker/business owners. Approximately 1% (or about 10,000) U.S. farmworkers are business owners either in the U.S. or in their native homeland. Both Hispanics (53.0%) and non-Hispanics (47.0%) form this unique subset, although Hispanic farmworkers are underrepresented in this business owner subset given that they make up a relatively high proportion of all U.S. farmworkers. Implications for business growth, entrepreneurship, and economic development abound; even in the most trying of occupations entrepreneurial outcomes may emerge. Two case studies outline possible pathways to business formation for agricultural workers. See the press release for this article.

Suggested Citation

  • Pisani, Michael J. & Guzman, Joseph M., 2016. "The Exceptional One Percent: U.S. Farmworker and Business Owner," Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, Center for Transformative Action, Cornell University, vol. 6(2).
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:joafsc:359769
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Rachel S. Shinnar & Cheri A. Young, 2008. "Hispanic Immigrant Entrepreneurs in the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area: Motivations for Entry into and Outcomes of Self‐Employment," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(2), pages 242-262, April.
    2. Borjas, George J. (ed.), 2007. "Mexican Immigration to the United States," National Bureau of Economic Research Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 2, number 9780226066325, March.
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