Eerie silence hangs over Central Coast farm fields in wake of ICE raids

[Originally posted in December 16, 2024] Wages for farm workers and food processing will likely rise, if the past is any guide.

Figure 1: Farm worker wage, 2023$ (blue, left log scale), and share of civilian employment foreign born (tan, right scale), both s.a. NBER defined peak-to-trough recession dates shaded gray. iFarm worker wage seasonally adjusted by author using X-13, deflated using CPI-U. Source: NASS/USDA, BLS, NBER, and author’s calculations.

Figure 2: Average hourly earnings for food manufacturing for production and nonsupervisory workers, 2023$ (blue, left log scale), and share of civilian employment foreign born (tan, right scale), both s.a. NBER defined peak-to-trough recession dates shaded gray. Wage deflated using CPI-U. Source: BLS, NBER, and author’s calculations.

How did these higher labor costs fit into wholesale prices? Here are some key PPI components vs.

Keep reading this article on Econbrowser Blog - James Hamilton & Menzie Chinn.

Leave a Reply