Who were the migrant workers in 1930s America?

Who were the migrant workers in 1930s America?

Mexican and Mexican-American Migrant Workers As migrant workers flooded into California from the Midwest, many Mexican and Mexican-American workers were pushed out of their jobs. Those that were still able to find farm work saw their wages decrease.

Who were the migrant workers and how are they affected by the Great Depression?

How did the Great Depression effect the migrant worker? Many Mexican American migrant workers were falsely deported because they were not viewed as “real” Americans. Migrant workers were subjected to harsher working conditions and lower wages because people were desperate for work. Workers were replaceable.

What kind of work did migrant workers do?

The term “migrant farmworker” includes people working temporarily or seasonally in farm fields, orchards, canneries, plant nurseries, fish/seafood packing plants, and more. Guest workers who temporarily live in the US through the federal H2A program to work on farms are also migrant farmworkers.

What was life like for migrant workers?

They lived in very poor conditions. They all lived in the same place and didnt always get enough food. They were barely payed anything. They only earned about 15 to 20 cents per hour.

How many people migrated to California in the 1930s?

The exact number of Dust Bowl refugees remains a matter of controversy, but by some estimates, as many as 400,000 migrants headed west to California during the 1930s, according to Christy Gavin and Garth Milam, writing in California State University, Bakersfield’s Dust Bowl Migration Archives.

Where do most migrant workers come from?

An estimated 14 million foreign workers live in the United States, which draws most of its immigrants from Mexico, including 4 or 5 million undocumented workers. It is estimated that around 5 million foreign workers live in Northwestern Europe, half a million in Japan, and around 5 million in Saudi Arabia.

Did migrant workers have any options for a better life?

Did migrant workers have any options for a better life? -Yes, but no. They could have been something great if they chose to, but that would have taken a lot of effort.

What did migrant workers do during the Great Depression?

The Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, a period of drought that destroyed millions of acres of farmland, forces white farmers to sell their farms and become migrant workers who travel from farm to farm to pick fruit and other crops at starvation wages.

Who was the migrant worker before the Great Depression?

Before the Great Depression, migrant workers in California were primarily of Mexican or Filipino descent. When the white Dust Bowl migrants arrived, they displaced many of the minority workers.

Where did people work during the Great Depression?

People Working In a Feild. The Great depression began in 1931 and went untill 1939. During the Great Depression many hispanic and mexican american workers came to california and many other places in the United States to work. During the great depression, many immigrants came to the United States to look for a job.

How much did migrant workers make in California in 1930?

Migrant workers in California who had been making 35 cents per hour in 1928 made only 14 cents per hour in 1933. Sugar beet workers in Colorado saw their wages decrease from $27 an acre in 1930 to $12.37 an acre three years later.

How did Mexican Americans feel during the Great Depression?

Mexican and Mexican-American migrant workers felt the full force of state power during the Great Depression. As non-citizens, many Mexicans were banned from public works projects available to other destitute workers. Moreover, communities looking for a scapegoat to explain the Depression often blamed Mexicans.