Why did so many migrant workers go to California in the 1930s?
Driven by the depression, drought, and the Dust Bowl, thousands upon thousands left their homes in Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. Over 300,000 of them came to California. They looked to California as a land of promise. Not since the Gold Rush had so many people traveled in such large numbers to the state.
What was life like for a migrant worker in California?
Migrant workers lacked educational opportunities for their children, lived in poverty and terrible housing conditions, and faced discrimination and violence when they sought fair treatment. Attempts to organize workers into unions were violently suppressed.
When did migrant workers go to California?
The Dust Bowl exodus was the largest migration in American history. By 1940, 2.5 million people had moved out of the Plains states; of those, 200,000 moved to California.
What happened to most migrant workers when they arrived in California?
As migrants arrived in California, there were far more workers than available jobs. This overabundance of laborers drove down wages. Many migrants set up camp along the irrigation ditches of the farms they were working, which led to overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions.
What happened to the migrant workers in the 1930s?
The Great Depression and the Dust Bowl (a period of drought that destroyed millions of acres of farmland) forced white farmers to sell their farms and become migrant workers who traveled from farm to farm to pick fruit and other crops at starvation wages.
What happened to migrant workers in the 1930s?
Where in California did migrant workers find jobs?
Many families left farm fields to move to Los Angeles or the San Francisco Bay area, where they found work in shipyards and aircraft factories that were gearing up to supply the war effort.
How much do migrant workers get paid in California?
Employers that hire H-2A workers must pay a state-specific minimum wage, which may not be lower than AEWR. In California, the pay rate for H-2A workers was $14.77 in 2020 and $16.05 in 2021. In 2022, the state’s H-2A workers will see a $2.74 hourly jump from the 2020 rate for an hourly pay of $17.51.
What was a typical day for a migrant worker?
The typical day for a migrant worker was very difficult they moved place to place looking for jobs. The workers asked to stay at a home but it always came with a price, the price was work. The workers had to do a job and once they were finished they could stay at the place for the night.
What was average pay for a migrant worker in the 1930s?
As a result, wages throughout the nation fell during the Depression. 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.
What were migrant workers paid by?
Although the AEWR varies by region, DOL reported that the nationwide average hourly AEWR in 2020 was $13.68 per hour. While the AEWR was higher in 19 states—the highest being in seven states where the AEWR was between $14.77 and $15.83 in 2020—it was lower than the national average in many states.
Where in California did migrant workers find jobs in the 1930s?
How much did a factory worker make in 1920?
Between April 1919 and October 1920, one worker’s weekly rate increased from $9 to $15; another’s, from $10 to $19; and a third worker’s, from $9.50 to $21.60, all raises far outstripping the inflation of the time.
How did the Okies survive?
They had better living situations and better views on life. When World War II began, large amounts of money went flooding to California to aid the USA in the war. This was great for the Okies, more jobs, better jobs, opened up and they were able to make their lives better over time.
What was life like for migrant workers in California?
The working hours were long, and many children worked in the fields with their parents. Working conditions were often unsafe and unsanitary. Migrant workers had to follow the harvest of different crops, so they had to continue to pack up and move throughout California to find work. Likewise, how much did migrant farm workers earn in the 1930s?
Why did migrant workers head to California?
They looked to California as a land of promise. Not since the Gold Rush had so many people traveled in such large numbers to the state. The Dust Bowl migrants came to California to stay, and they changed the culture and politics of the state forever. Why California?
What were the migrant workers like in the 1930s?
What were migrant workers in 1930s America? 1930s: The Great Depression and the Dust Bowl (a period of drought that destroyed millions of acres of farmland) forced white farmers to sell their farms and become migrant workers who traveled from farm to farm to pick fruit and other crops at starvation wages.
Where in California did migrant workers find jobs in 1930? Los Angeles. What was Salinas California like in the 1930s? The Salinas Valley was a very productive land with crops in the early 1930s. The population at the time reached 10,236. The Salinas Valley was appreciable until workers demanded better conditions.