XVI. SOME PROBLEMS OF AGRICULTURAL LABOR 



QUESTIONS 



i. Is the length of the working day on the American farm such 

 as to be a menace to the health of the workers? Does it entail 

 enough discomfort to become a factor in wages? Does it drive 

 workers away or discourage them from coming into agricultural 

 employment ? 



2. What is the length of the working day in your neighborhood? 

 Could farmers cut this down by shrewd management ? Is there any 

 tendency to get away from the extremely long day? How is it 

 brought about ? 



3. Is a set working day of ten or nine or eight hours practicable 

 in agriculture ? Explain. Could the farm employ two shifts during 

 rush periods? What do you know about night work in agri- 

 culture ? 



4. Have living conditions for the farm hand improved as fast as 

 the standard of living has risen for the typical American farm family ? 

 as rapidly as the standard of living of wage workers in cities has 

 risen ? Why ? 



5. Do we have any class of agricultural workers for whom living 

 conditions are relatively worse than anything known in agriculture in 

 the past ? 



6. Does it appear to be necessary to improve the conditions of 

 employment and of living for agricultural workers today ? Why ? 



7. Describe some of the movements which seem to promise suc- 

 cess in this direction. 



8. Does intemperance constitute a problem of rural labor in your 

 community? Do you believe that recent "dry" legislation has les- 

 sened the evil for the country as a whole ? 



9. If farm hands resorted to drink because of the "barrenness of 

 farm life," is the problem being solved by removing its cause ? Is it 

 in your experience a problem of the resident, permanent workers, or 

 of the floating, seasonal labor ? 



10. Explain the nature of the accident hazard in farm work. 

 What proportion of this risk could be eliminated by proper preventive 

 measur es ? Are there still considerable hazards inherent in the occu- 

 pation? Do they tend to grow more or less extensive with the 

 development of the business ? 



11. Are there any "occupational diseases" connected with agri- 

 culture? Is the general health risk higher or lower than for city 

 dwellers ? What are the possibilities in this direction ? 



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