Graduate Exit Seminar - Isaiah Franco

Plan to join Isaiah Franco's graduate exit seminar on July 9, 2025, at 9:00 am in Kottman Hall, Room 333 or via Zoom. Isaiah will present, "Latine Farmworker Recruitment and Community Wellbeing in Ohio"

Abstract: Agricultural systems in the US have long relied on flexible low-wage (usually undocumented) labor to meet needs at peak points during the season, with little consideration for the impacts of this low wage labor on essential farmworkers. To meet the challenge of decreasing worker availability, utilization of the H-2A temporary worker program has grown substantially in the US. As the US transitions from a largely undocumented but settled farm labor force to one which has legal work status but is temporary, it is important to study the wellbeing impacts of this shift on farmworkers, farmers, and the communities in which they settle. Accordingly, this project draws on 33 qualitative interviews gathered in three Ohio communities differentiated by the degree to which they rely on H-2A or non-H-2A laborers. In doing so, it aims to inform efforts by rural communities to adapt to changing migration patterns.

This thesis asks: 1.) How does farmworker, farmer, and community wellbeing differ depending on the mix of labor recruitment through H-2A or non-H-2A pathways? 2.) How can communities and immigrant support organizations improve wellbeing in response? Generally H-2A employment is characterized in these communities by more tenuous relationships to the communities in which workers settle than non-H-2A workers, though proactive community action may address challenges accompanying H-2A employment.

Advisor: Dr. Douglas Jackson-Smith