Socio-Economic Impact of Nursery Automation

The nursery and greenhouse industry is often described as one of the fastest-growing sectors of U.S. agriculture and is inherently labor intensive. In order to sustain robust growth in the industry, continuous improvements in the skills of the workforce and their year-round availability are necessary. These workers perform varied functions and are subjected to different working conditions. Many jobs in the industry require large amounts of stooping, lifting of heavy containers, and exposure to chemicals, dust, and plant materials. These tend to be relatively-low paying jobs making it difficult for managers to compete for and retain workers in currently tight domestic labor markets. Many commercial operations have employed immigrant labor, which is mostly less skilled, to meet their rising labor requirements. In the long-run, there is a need to increase the skill level of these migrant workers in order to improve wage rates, recruitment, and retention of workers.

A socioeconomic survey of nursery and greenhouse automation and mechanization is currently ongoing as part of a research program undertaken by the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station and the U.S. Department of Labor entitled “Enhancing Labor Performance of the Green Industry in the Gulf South.” The 10-page socioeconomic survey consists of eight parts, namely: workers’ demographic characteristics, nursery characteristics, nursery mechanization, greenhouse automation, labor and capital markets, pesticide and chemicals, working conditions, and respondents’ characteristics. The overall goals of the regional socioeconomic survey are to develop a socioeconomic profile of horticulture workers and to evaluate the impact of automation on their employment, earnings, safety, skill-levels, and retention rates.

Using results of the completed survey of nurseries and greenhouses in the northern Gulf of Mexico states, Tobit regression analysis was used to estimate empirical models to measure the socioeconomic impact of automation or mechanization on annual gross sales, annual employment, and workers’ earnings, safety and retention. The survey was conducted among 87 randomly selected nurseries and greenhouses located in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama from Dec. 2003 to Mar. 2005. About 20% of all the identified major tasks were performed by workers in nurseries and greenhouses with some form of mechanization or automation. Regression results showed that nurseries and greenhouses that experienced higher levels of sales also demonstrated higher levels of automation or mechanization. The employment impact of automation or mechanization was neutral indicating that any improvement in automation or mechanization did not necessarily lead to a reduction but instead to a more efficient use of labor by nurseries and greenhouses. Improvements in automation or mechanization resulted in higher total workers’ earnings reported by participating nurseries and greenhouses. Further Tobit regression results showed that automation or mechanization had neutral effects on the length of training period, workers’ safety and retention rates and enabled nurseries and greenhouses to hire less-skilled workers.

• Posadas, Benedict C., Randal Y. Coker, Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Socioeconomic Determinants of Technology Adoption Among Nurseries and Greenhouses. Proceedings of the 54th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference. 54: 321-323.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Randal Y. Coker, Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Current Mechanization Systems Among Nurseries and Greenhouses. Proceedings of the 54th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference. 54: 117-120.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Randal Y. Coker, Scott A. Langlois, Patricia R. Knight, and Christine H. Coker. 2009. Operational Characteristics of Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Northern Gulf of Mexico States. MAFES Bulletin 1184, Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. In press.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2009. Socioeconomic Characteristics of Workers and Working Conditions in Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Northern Gulf of Mexico States. MAFES Bulletin 1182, Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2008. Operational Characteristics of Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Proceedings of the 53rd Southern Nursery Association Research Conference, 53:290-296.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2008. Socioeconomic Impact of Automation on Horticulture Production Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. HortTechnology, 18(4):697-704.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2007. Working Conditions and Socioeconomic Impact of Mechanization in Horticulture Firms. Proceedings of the 52nd Southern Nursery Association Research Conference, 52:461-466.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2006. Economic Impacts of Technology Adoption on Horticulture Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Proceedings of the 51st Southern Nursery Association Research Conference, 51: 317-320.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, Scott A. Langlois, and C. David Veal. 2005. Levels of Technology Adoption Among Horticulture Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Proceedings of the Southern Nursery Association Research Conference, 50: 365-368.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, Scott A. Langlois, and C. David Veal. 2005. Socio-economic Characteristics of Horticulture Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Proceedings of the Southern Nursery Association Research Conference, 50: 348-350.
• Posadas, B. C., G. B. Fain, C. H. Coker, P. Knight and C. D. Veal. 2004. Socioeconomic Survey of Nursery Automation. Proceedings of the Southern Nursery Association Research Conference, 49: 306-309.

• Posadas, Benedict C., Randal Y. Coker, Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Socioeconomic Determinants of Technology Adoption Among Nurseries and Greenhouses. Poster presented at the 54th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia, February 2009.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Randal Y. Coker, Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Current Mechanization Systems Among Nurseries and Greenhouses. Poster presented at the 54th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia, February 2009.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Operational Characteristics of Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Poster presented at the 35th Horticulture Field Day, South Mississippi Branch Experiment Station, Poplarville, Mississippi. October 2, 2008.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Operational Characteristics of Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Poster presented at the 53rd Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia, August 2008.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2007. Working Conditions and Socioeconomic Impact of Mechanization in Horticulture Firms. Poster presented at the 34th Horticulture Field Day, South Mississippi Branch Experiment Station, Poplarville, Mississippi. October 4, 2007.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. 2007. Working Conditions and Socioeconomic Impact of Mechanization in Horticulture Firms. Poster presented at the 52nd Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia. http://www.sna.org/
• Coker, Randy, and Benedict Posadas. Socio-Economics of Technology Adoption. Paper presented at the 51st Annual Southern Nursery Association Trade Show World Stage, Atlanta, Georgia, August, 2006.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, and Scott A. Langlois. Economic Impacts of Technology Adoption Among Horticulture Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Poster presented at the 51st Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia. August 2006.
• Posadas, Benedict C. Socio-Economic Impact of Nursery Automation. Gulf States Horticulture Expo Education Seminars, Mobile, Alabama, February 2006.
• Posadas, Benedict C. Socio-Economics of Technology Adoption. One-hour presentation at the 50th Annual Southern Nursery Association Trade Show World Stage, Atlanta, Georgia, August, 2005.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, Scott A. Langlois, and C. David Veal. Socio-economic Characteristics of Horticulture Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Poster presented at the 50th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia, August, 2005.
• Posadas, Benedict C., Patricia R. Knight, Christine H. Coker, Randal Y. Coker, Scott A. Langlois, and C. David Veal. Levels of Technology Adoption Among Horticulture Firms in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Poster presented at the 50th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia, August, 2005.
• Posadas, B. C., P. Knight., G. Fain, C. Coker, D. Veal, and R. Coker. Socio-Economic Survey of Nursery Automation. Poster presented at the 49th Annual Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and Trade Show, Atlanta, Georgia, August 11-12, 2004.
• Posadas, B.C., P. Knight, R. Y. Coker and C. D. Veal. 2003. Socioeconomic Impact of the Green Industry of the Gulf of Mexico Region. Poster presented at the 31st Horticulture Field Day, South Mississippi Branch Experiment Station, Poplarville, Mississippi, October 2, 2003.

• American Nursery and Landscape Association
• Mississippi Agricultural Statistics Service
• O*Net Online Occupational Information Network
• United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey
• United States Bureau of Economic Analysis
• United States Census Bureau, Educational Attainment in the United States
• United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey
• United States Department of Agriculture, Floriculture and Nursery Crops Yearbook