IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jageco/v65y2014i1p257-272.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Demand for Seasonal Wage Labour in Agriculture: What Does Family Farming Hide?

Author

Listed:
  • Aurélie Darpeix
  • Céline Bignebat
  • Philippe Perrier-Cornet

Abstract

type="main" xml:id="jage12019-abs-0001"> This article draws on the agricultural household literature to understand the dynamics of wage labour on farms in a context of family farming. The recent evolution towards an increased use of seasonal wage labour motivates the original distinction of three types of labour: family labour, permanent-wage labour and seasonal-wage labour. Considering the two wage labour types and hiring cost for seasonal workers, our empirical results based on 2000 French data on fruit and vegetable farms suggest that the choice between hiring permanent or seasonal wage labour is not only determined by the seasonality of the activity. Indeed, the characteristics of the local labour market also affect the trade-off between permanent and seasonal wage labour. This result provides insights on the substitutability of the two labour types, especially when the local labour market is tight. Moreover, the substitution of seasonal-wage labour for permanent-wage labour can occur in the agricultural sector as a mean of increasing flexibility as well as reducing costs and commitments. Finally, family labour is found to substitute for wage labour and more specifically for seasonal-wage labour.

Suggested Citation

  • Aurélie Darpeix & Céline Bignebat & Philippe Perrier-Cornet, 2014. "Demand for Seasonal Wage Labour in Agriculture: What Does Family Farming Hide?," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 65(1), pages 257-272, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jageco:v:65:y:2014:i:1:p:257-272
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/jage.2014.65.issue-1
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Daniel A. Sumner, 1982. "The Off-Farm Labor Supply of Farmers," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 64(3), pages 499-509.
    2. Catherine Benjamin & Ayal Kimhi, 2006. "Farm work, off-farm work, and hired farm labour: estimating a discrete-choice model of French farm couples' labour decisions," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 33(2), pages 149-171, June.
    3. Pranab K. Bardhan, 1983. "Labor-tying in a Poor Agrarian Economy: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 98(3), pages 501-514.
    4. Michel Blanc & Eric E. Cahuzac & Bernard B. Elyakime & Gabriel Tahar, 2008. "Demand for on-farm permanent hired labour on family holdings," Post-Print hal-02668945, HAL.
    5. Bardhan, Pranab K, 1979. "Wages and Unemployment in a Poor Agrarian Economy: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 87(3), pages 479-500, June.
    6. Catherine Benjamin & Alessandro Corsi & Hervé Guyomard, 1996. "Modelling labour decisions of French agricultural households," Post-Print hal-01931609, HAL.
    7. Michel Blanc & Eric Cahuzac & Bernard Elyakime & Gabriel Tahar, 2008. "Demand for on-farm permanent hired labour on family holdings," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 35(4), pages 493-518, December.
    8. Innes, Robert, 1993. "Two-Season Subsistence Farming, Urban Food Subsidies and Optimal Agricultural Policy," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 45(4), pages 668-690, October.
    9. Eswaran, Mukesh & Kotwal, Ashok, 1985. "A Theory of Two-Tier Labor Markets in Agrarian Economies," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 75(1), pages 162-177, March.
    10. Ayal Kimhi & Myoung-jae Lee, 1996. "Off-Farm Work Decisions of Farm Couples: Estimating Structural Simultaneous Equations with Ordered Categorical Dependent Variables," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 78(3), pages 687-698.
    11. Singh, Inderjit & Squire, Lyn & Strauss, John, 1986. "A Survey of Agricultural Household Models: Recent Findings and Policy Implications," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 1(1), pages 149-179, September.
    12. Emlinger, Charlotte & Lozza, Emmanuelle Chevassus & Jacquet, Florence, 2006. "EU market access for Mediterranean fruit and vegetables: A gravity model assessment," 98th Seminar, June 29-July 2, 2006, Chania, Crete, Greece 10098, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    13. Pal, Sarmistha, 2002. "Segmentation of Rural Labour Contracts: Some Further Evidence," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(2), pages 151-180, April.
    14. Schmitt, Gunther, 1991. "Why Is the Agriculture of Advanced Western Economies Still Organized by Family Farms? Will This Continue to Be So in the Future?," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 18(3-4), pages 443-458.
    15. Tamás Bartus, 2005. "Estimation of marginal effects using margeff," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 5(3), pages 309-329, September.
    16. Saha, Atanu, 1994. "A two-season agricultural household model of output and price uncertainty," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 245-269, December.
    17. Pal, Sarmistha, 1999. "Task-Based Segmentation of Rural Labour Contracts: Theory and Evidence," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(1), pages 67-94, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Davidova, Sophia & Thomson, Kenneth J, 2014. "Family Farming in the Enlarged EU: Concepts, challenges and prospects," 142nd Seminar, May 29-30, 2014, Budapest, Hungary 170155, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    2. Maró, Zalán Márk & Borda, Áron József & Balogh, Jeremiás Máté, 2024. "Challenges and Trends in Agricultural Employment: The Case of Hungary," AGRIS on-line Papers in Economics and Informatics, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Faculty of Economics and Management, vol. 16(4), December.
    3. repec:zbw:iamodp:274820 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Kloss, Mathias & Petrick, Martin, 2014. "The productivity of family and hired labour in EU arable farming," 2014 International Congress, August 26-29, 2014, Ljubljana, Slovenia 183041, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    5. Celine Bignebat & Pierre-Marie Bosc & Philippe Perrier-Cornet, 2015. "Exploring structural transformation: a labour-based analysis of the evolution of French agricultural holdings 2000-2010," Post-Print hal-02740105, HAL.
    6. Garcia, Luis & Laepple, Doris & Dillon, Emma & Thorne, Fiona, 2020. "The role of hired labor in transient and persistent technical efficiency on Irish dairy farms," 2020 Annual Meeting, July 26-28, Kansas City, Missouri 304395, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    7. Celine Bignebat & Pierre-Marie Bosc & Philippe Perrier-Cornet, 2015. "A labour-based approach to the analysis of structural transformation: application to French agricultural holdings 2000," Post-Print hal-02744159, HAL.
    8. Yagi, Hironori & Hayashi, Tsuneo, 2021. "Working conditions and labor flexibility in non-family farms: weather-based labor management by Japanese paddy rice corporations," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 24(2), February.
    9. Esther Laske & Sandrine Michel, 2022. "What contribution of agroecology to job creation in sub-Saharan Africa? The case of horticulture in the Niayes, Senegal," Post-Print hal-03766499, HAL.
    10. Céline Bignebat & Fatima El Hadad‐Gauthier, 2021. "Integration in export marketing channels and farms' labor force composition: Female agricultural workers in the Moroccan vegetable sector," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 37(3), pages 515-530, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dupraz, Pierre & Latruffe, Laure, 2015. "Trends in family labour, hired labour and contract work on French field crop farms: The role of the Common Agricultural Policy," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 104-118.
    2. Pierre Dupraz & Laure Latruffe & Stefan Mann, 2010. "Trends in family, hired and contract labour use on French and Swiss crop farms: The role of agricultural policies," Working Papers SMART 10-16, INRAE UMR SMART.
    3. Wang, Xiaobing, 2007. "Labor market behavior of Chinese rural households during transition," Studies on the Agricultural and Food Sector in Transition Economies, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), volume 42, number 92321, September.
    4. Arnab Basu, 2013. "Impact of rural employment guarantee schemes on seasonal labor markets: optimum compensation and workers’ welfare," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 11(1), pages 1-34, March.
    5. Tocco, Barbara & Davidova, Sophia & Bailey, Alastair Creation-Date: 2012-02, "undated". "Key Issues in Agricultural Labour Markets: A Review of Major Studies and Project Reports on Agriculture and Rural Labour Markets," Factor Markets Working Papers 126, Centre for European Policy Studies.
    6. Pauline Lécole, 2020. "Small French Farms and Employment: are they creating wage labour," Working Papers hal-03027189, HAL.
    7. Pauline Lécole, 2020. "Small French Farms and Employment: are they creating wage labour," CEE-M Working Papers hal-03027189, CEE-M, Universtiy of Montpellier, CNRS, INRA, Montpellier SupAgro.
    8. Mukherjee, Anindita & Ray, Debraj, 1995. "Labor tying," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(2), pages 207-239, August.
    9. Benjamin, Catherine & Kimhi, Ayal, 2003. "Farm Work, Off-Farm Work, And Hired Farm Labor: Estimating A Discrete-Choice Model Of French Farm Couples' Labor Decisions," Discussion Papers 14990, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Department of Agricultural Economics and Management.
    10. Kloss, Mathias & Petrick, Martin, 2014. "The productivity of family and hired labour in EU arable farming," 2014 International Congress, August 26-29, 2014, Ljubljana, Slovenia 183041, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    11. Emran, M. Shahe & Shilpi, Forhad, 2014. "Land Market Restrictions, Women's Labor Force Participation and Wages," MPRA Paper 57989, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Dierk Schmid & Swetlana Renner & Daniel Hoop, 2023. "Exploring within- and between-effects of the factors influencing off-farm work decisions in Switzerland," Agricultural Economics, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 69(10), pages 416-425.
    13. repec:zbw:iamodp:274820 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Castro Campos, Bente, 2013. "Human capital differences or labor market discrimination? The occupational outcomes of ethnic minorities in rural Guizhou (China)," Studies on the Agricultural and Food Sector in Transition Economies, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), volume 73, number 73, September.
    15. Eric Edmonds, 2007. "Institutional Influences on Human Capital Accumulation: Micro Evidence from Children Vulnerable to Bondage," Working Papers id:1109, eSocialSciences.
    16. Capt, Danièle & Wavresky, Pierre, 2014. "Determinants of direct-to-consumer sales on French farms," Review of Agricultural and Environmental Studies - Revue d'Etudes en Agriculture et Environnement (RAEStud), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), vol. 95(3).
    17. Nikolaj Malchow-Møller & Michael Svarer, 2005. "Wage - labour activities by agricultural households in Nicaragua," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 41(7), pages 1221-1246.
    18. Kaditi, Eleni A., 2013. "The Impact of CAP Reforms on Farm Labour Structure," Working papers 157914, Factor Markets, Centre for European Policy Studies.
    19. Catherine Benjamin & Ayal Kimhi, 2006. "Farm work, off-farm work, and hired farm labour: estimating a discrete-choice model of French farm couples' labour decisions," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 33(2), pages 149-171, June.
    20. Hisham S. El-Osta & Ashok K. Mishra & Mitchell J. Morehart, 2008. "Off-Farm Labor Participation Decisions of Married Farm Couples and the Role of Government Payments," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 30(2), pages 311-332.
    21. Unay-Gailhard, Ilkay & Bojnec, Štefan, 2016. "Agri-environmental measures and on-farm labour employment," 149th Seminar, October 27-28, 2016, Rennes, France 245070, European Association of Agricultural Economists.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J43 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Agricultural Labor Markets
    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jageco:v:65:y:2014:i:1:p:257-272. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0021-857X .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.