ABSTRACT
This chapter describes various forms of abuse farmworkers experience, discusses the context in which farmworker abuse occurs in the US, summarizes research challenges and lays out avenues for future research. Agricultural workers had the lowest rate of trafficking experiences among those interviewed; construction and janitorial workers experienced the highest rate of victimization. Smuggling is distinct in that it includes two willing parties, whereas trafficking relies on exploitation and coercion of one party by another. Related to poor working and living conditions, farmworkers are at an elevated risk of exposure to environmental hazards, particularly pesticides. The most common type of exploitation was abusive labor practices, followed by deception and lies, restrictions to physical or communicative freedom, and threats to physical integrity. Research that incorporates those with broader backgrounds may produce a more nuanced understanding of the issues and how they can be better addressed. One of the primary challenges in farmworker abuse research is establishing a sampling frame of farmworkers.
