Supporting Migrant Families

As the unemployment rate across the nation continues to fall it has proven more and more difficult to find farm workers to perform hand task.  Many producers have turned to the H2A migrant worker program to fill the need for on-farm labor.  Through this program producers are able to hire seasonal migrant workers to perform task that they are unable to find local employees for.

Not too many years ago the predominate language on any farm in the United States was English.  Now it is not uncommon to hear multiple languages or have multiple nationalities on the labor force.  Farms in Kentucky now have employees from Mexico, Central and South America, and South Africa.  While communication has been difficult at times producers realized there was a need for farm safety education.

Christian County Cooperative Extension service, Christian County public schools Migrant Advocates, and GAP Connections partnered together to host multiple migrant farm worker safety trainings.  The trainings allowed participants to be taught in their native tongue from experts within the field of farm safety.  In total 225 farm workers were exposed to cpr, first aide, barn and tractor safety. Through program the workers gained knowledge and felt more comfortable performing their daily task.

As we see more migrant workers from countries across the world entering our local work force it is important that we keep our employees safe and that they have the knowledge to perform the task that they have been given.  By partnering with the UK extension service and GAP Connections, the Christian County School system was able to support migrant families of Christian County.