Farmwork in Southern California poses many health risks to the workers year-round. People are not meant to work in the sun for long periods of time doing work that is harmful to their muscles, skin, and lungs. It is also unnatural for people to be consuming large amounts of pesticides at once but that is exactly what farmworkers do. Studies on the effects of farmwork on a person’s body have proven that people are negatively affected due to the conditions under which they work. Cheney et al., for example, found that farmworkers have higher rates of skin disease, throat and lung issues, and vision issues than people who are not farmworkers (p. 2). Different studies have also shown that it is primarily Mexican Immigrants who are working these jobs based on the questions of race to get a better understanding of who is primarily being affected.
To better understand the effects that come from working in the heat alone, one must know that the highest temperature can rise to 111.56 degrees Fahrenheit and that in the spring and summer, it is typically around 98 degrees Fahrenheit daily (Cheney et al., 5). This heat causes sunburn, heat exhaustion, and dehydration, but workers are still expected to work and excel in picking foods. Many of the farmworkers cover their skin with clothing and while that may protect them from the sun, they will get hot faster and stay hot, increasing risks of heat exhaustion and dehydration. Cheney also describes the injuries that workers can face when they are continuously picking crops, lifting heavy objects, and walking, standing, or kneeling for long times, (p.2). These can result in injuries because of the constant motion and body weight that people are putting their bodies through. This work never seems to stop for farmworkers and even when they are home, they are still at risk for health issues.
Families living in four, largely, Mexican immigrant communities surrounding the Salton Sea face the after-effects of dust storms, pesticides, and runoff that have drifted and polluted the sea. These areas are easily accessible for Mexican immigrant families to live in but they are being exposed to fumes that will make them sick. Cheney found that “approximately 20–22.4% of children living along the Salton Sea meet the diagnostic criteria for asthma or other respiratory illness, compared to 10% for children in California and 11.3% in the U.S. as a whole” (p.7). Not only is the health of farmworkers declining but the health of their children is declining due to easy placement for Mexican immigrants. These families are not even provided with healthy areas to live in while many of the family members are provided the United States with fresh foods.
Hamilton, et al., (2019) look at how an individual’s legal status in the country can affect their physical health. These researchers studied chronic health conditions and musculoskeletal pain between documented and undocumented citizens. They found, not supporting their hypothesis, that documented citizens had worse outcomes than documented citizens (p.19). Although this does not support their hypothesis there is a huge underlying reason as to why that may be.
This graph is from Hamilton, et. al, research on lifetime chronic health conditions and musculoskeletal pain. Although the researchers were looking for data that would support the idea of unauthorized immigrants having a higher rate of chronic conditions in musculoskeletal pain this graph is still very important. With this graph, people have to keep in mind that unauthorized immigrants have little to no access to healthcare due to their legal status. Even if some unauthorized immigrants do have some form of access, they may be afraid of being deported once people find out. There are numerous harms to working in the agriculture business and unfortunately, many Mexican immigrants have to suffer and continue working to provide for themselves and their families.