Workforce Implications From Farm Automation

Abstract

US agriculture is evolving rapidly, especially with the development of new and more complex labor-saving technologies. This study overviews the workforce implications of agricultural automation, including those for employment, wages, job quality, and more. Contrary to beliefs that automation reduces employment, we show that automation can raise employment and wages by increasing farm production and creating higher-paid and more desirable jobs in complementary sectors. These workforce implications are mediated by the factors that drive adoption and how effects permeate across the agri-food system, suggesting that governments play a key role in ensuring positive workforce outcomes through policymaking and funding allocations.