摘要：The U.S. government recruits immigrant workers through the H-2A program as a short-term solution to the agricultural sectors’ labor shortage problem. Although the sector insists hiring immigrant workers is essential for their survival, history has proven the socio-economic cost for doing so is enormous. This paper aims to investigate the contribution of labor to agricultural production efficiency. A discussion of marginal rate of technical substitution, economies of scale, and economies of scope will also be included. The stochastic production frontier regression approach was applied to input/output data collected from a survey of tree nut growers in Butte County, California. Results indicate the labor input is not significant in deciding farm production efficiency. Instead of attempting to increase short-term labor, producers’ and policy makers’ efforts should be directed toward improving the logistics of farm management and the quality of labor, thus more efficiently utilizing available resources.
关键词：Stochastic Frontier Production Model;Labor Input Efficiency;Labor Economics
