This study focuses on the labor market outcomes of immigration flows. To obtain a reliable view, I try to find evidence from the agricultural sector, whereby around half of the workers are undocumented. In recessionary periods, the labor demand might shift to the left in an unobservable manner. The reasons mainly lie that the steady demand for major fresh vegetables.1 Besides, most of the foreign-born farmworkers are seasonal. Hence, the job opportunities might maintain a similar level as at ordinary times. In other words, the agricultural sector might hold additional job vacancies while other sectors are facing a rising unemployment rate at recessionary times. During recessions, the undocumented immigrants could be crowded out by documented workers who were laid off from other sectors, or they could be unaffected because less than two percent of the US's native-born labor force would like working on farms. This study addresses: (1) what are the compositional changes of foreign-born farmworkers? (2) What are the changes in hours worked of foreign-born farmworkers? And (3) what are the changes in stays of those farmworkers if they enter the US at recessionary times? This study reveals that during recessions, the share of documented foreign-born farmworkers, the share of newcomers, and the share of undocumented newcomers decreases.3 The number of hours worked rises for both foreign-born documented and undocumented agricultural workers. Shorter duration spells are observed if foreign-born farmworkers enter the US during recessions, especially for foreign-born documented workers. These findings suggest a possible downsized labor supply in recessions and employed agricultural workers could choose to work more hours if they want to.4 Also, during recessions, foreign-born documented agricultural workers tend to shorten their stays. Overall, these findings together demonstrate that recessions deter immigration flows.

xii, 59 p. : ill., col. maps. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / Continued federal and state policies aimed at reducing the livelihood of undocumented workers may force these populations to move to other locations. With the loss of undocumented workers and their families, Oregon can expect to see losses in population, employment, industrial production and state and local revenue. As undocumented populations are unevenly distributed across the state similarly to Hispanic populations, this study expects six counties, Hood River, jefferson, Malheur, Marion, Morrow and Umatilla, will see more than an eightpercent population loss, double the expected state loss rate, and proportionally greater economic losses. By estimating the undocumented population in each of Oregon's 36 counties, this study further details potential economic losses in the six Oregon counties with concentrated Hispanic, and consequently, undocumented populations. / Committee in Charge: Dr. Laura Leete, Chair; Dr. Jean Stockard; Dr. Daniel HoSang

This qualitative research project examined health experiences of female agricultural workers in central Florida. Specifically, this study identified the most common physical and mental health illnesses and issues reported by female agricultural workers, their health-related decision-making processes, methods used to access health-related information, and the challenges they encounter when attempting to access health-related information, support, and services. In total, 21 interviews were conducted with women who had worked for at least one year as an agricultural worker in central Florida. The data was analyzed for emergent themes based on a codebook developed using the IDEA model as a theoretical framework. The results revealed that female agricultural workers realize the relevance and impact of key physical and mental health issues and actively seek information about them and help to treat, as well as prevent them. However, the results also revealed a level of distrust for some medical providers and other information sources, as well as challenges in understanding health-related information due to language and health literacy barriers. They also identified several challenges that hinder them from getting the medical help they needed. These include, for example, financial constraints, immigration status, fear of deportation, and fear of losing their children and their jobs. Finally, this study confirmed the utility of the IDEA model as a framework for examining interview data provided by underrepresented populations regarding health-related topics and issues. It also identified recommendations and ideas for future research that, if carried out, would continue to raise awareness about the community's health communication constraints.