Survey Implementation
Now Available!
Ventura County Farmworker Study Phase 2 and 3 Survey Summary Report and Presentation
A Survey Summary Report outlining the methodology and data collected in Phases 2 and 3 was prepared be BAE Urban Economics, which includes the major findings of the farmworker and employer surveys, stakeholder interviews, as well as the Farmworker Focus Group Meeting (read more about the survey effort below). The Summary Report is available in English and the Executive Summary section is available in Spanish
Additionally, a Survey Summary Presentation summarizing the results of the surveys is available in English and Spanish, which can be utilized by all cities in Ventura County, and local stakeholders to present at key agricultural events or city meetings.
Local Cities and stakeholders have the opportunity to share your perspective on the survey results after you present them, and provide us with feedback HERE. Your input will be considered by the consultant developing Phases 4 and 5 of the Countywide Study and Action Plan document.
For more information regarding these materials, or to provide feedback, contact Ruchita Kadakia, Planning Manager at Ruchita.Kadakia@ventura.org, or House Farm Workers! at info@housefarmworkers.com
For Phase 2 of the project, the consultant team, along with input from the Coordination Committee and guidance from the Advisory Council:
- Developed a Survey Methodology which ensures that the anticipated 400-500 surveys include the right mix of farmworkers from various crop types, locations, and agricultural businesses, accurately representing the County’s agricultural industry;
- Created an effective Communications Plan for administering each survey type and
- Designed the Surveys for farmworkers and employers and the format for stakeholder interviews, all of which will be implemented in Phase 3.
Phase 3 of the project, completed in August 2024, implemented the following to gather community input. This information will be used to develop Phases 4 and 5 – the Countywide Farmworker Study; and identify key solutions through an Action Plan that each jurisdiction can undertake to develop more housing.
1. Farmworker Surveys – Completed
BAE Urban Economics designed the farmworker survey with input and guidance from the Ventura County Farmworker Resource program (FRP) staff, the Coordination Committee, and the Advisory Council, which focuses on questions related to current housing conditions and costs, future housing needs, income, and transportation, to name a few. The FRP staff pre-tested, administering several versions of the survey questions in various languages. Besides the wording of the questions, their refinements improved the efficiency and ease of administering the survey within the target time of 30 minutes. In addition, the Coordination Committee finalized a surveyor training manual for uniform survey protocols and made arrangements for gift cards from local grocery stores to be provided to survey respondents.
Surveying began in April 2023 and was conducted through September 2023. A total of 417 farmworker surveys were completed which met the goal identified in the survey methodology developed in Phase 2. While several farms offered access to their workers, House Farm Workers!, along with the contacts in the Advisory Council, did an extensive outreach to local agricultural employers and contacted numerous growers, farm labor contractors and packing houses to ensure surveys were conducted to include all crops and County areas.
See this one-page handout in English and Spanish, summarizing key points related to the farmworker survey, which will be utilized during the interviews and at agricultural promotion events.
FRP staff have also prepared a video in multiple languages to introduce the survey, which is posted on FRP’s Facebook page and distributed through other social media such as Whatsapp groups. Click on your preferred language below to watch the videos and learn more about the surveying.
See the videos in:
English Video
Spanish Video
Mixteco Video
Purepecha Video
Zapoteco Video
2. Employer Surveys – Completed
BAE Urban Economics developed an online employer survey, and all Ventura County agricultural employers were invited by the Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office, Ventura County Farm Bureau, and House Farm Workers! by email to take the survey beginning February 24, 2023. Several community partners in the County, such as the Avocado Commission, are helping to spread the word to gather responses. If you are an agricultural employer and haven’t yet completed the survey, please contact info@housefarmworkers.org to receive an online link.
3. Stakeholder Interviews – Completed
BAE Urban Economics conducted one-on-one interviews with eleven (11) key stakeholders to get their input on farmworker housing needs, the current housing situation in the County, opportunities to improve farmworker housing, and agricultural labor needs.
4. Farmworker Focus Group Meeting - Completed
In mid-2023, the Ventura County Transporation Commission (VCTC) provided $25,000 in funding for an outreach event for the project where additional transportation information could be collected from local farmworkers. The Project Team, along with VCTC staff, designed on a Focus Group Meeting format for the event targeting maximum 40 farmworkers, and expanded the scope to include questions on housing and social services, in addition to transportation.
House Farm Workers! extended meeting invitations to local agricultural employers who had already accommodated surveying of their employees. In addition, the event details were carefully reviewed by the Project Team to ensure the location was central; the facility was familiar and had an adequate size for the anticipated activities and number of attendees; transportation would be available for those who needed it; the material would be easily understood; the event would be family-friendly; and incentives would be provided.
The Farmworker Focus Group Meeting was held in October 2023 at the Jose Flores Community Center in Saticoy, as it was central to the areas where most farmworkers lived or worked. Participants and their families were provided a catered dinner from a local restaurant, Santa Paula Art Museum hosted an art activity center for the families, and a cash incentive was provided to the participants at the end.
The County, House Farm Workers! and VCTC created visuals in the form of bilingual poster boards and collected real time responses from the participants on questions related to preliminary survey data, housing, and social services. In addition, the Project Team ensured that respondents had adequate language accessibility, and would be able to participate in their language of preference between Spanish, Mixteco, Purepecha, Zapoteco or English.
A total of 34 farmworkers attended the event along with their family members, making it over 80 people from the community in attendance. A summary of the event will be included in the Survey Summary Report for this Phase.
