Seasonal Agricultural Harvest Work
Fruit and vegetable growers, primarily Washington, Oregon, California, Michigan
Pays you
$17–$19/hr
Washington's 2026 Adverse Effect Wage Rate is $16.53/hr for entry-level farmworkers and $19.00/hr for skilled positions, down sharply from the $19.82 AEWR at the start of 2025 under new rules. TWO DEDUCTION FACTS THAT MATTER AND CUT OPPOSITE WAYS: (1) employers may deduct housing costs ONLY from H-2A guest workers, NOT from corresponding domestic workers, even when a domestic worker lives in the same employer-provided housing — so a US worker in grower housing may pay nothing for it while the H-2A worker beside them loses about $2.49/hr in Washington. (2) But domestic workers in eight states including Washington move to the STATE MINIMUM WAGE rather than the higher AEWR as of January 1, 2026, so the domestic worker's floor is lower. Piece rate is the norm at harvest with the applicable minimum as a make-up floor; a fast experienced picker beats the hourly rate substantially and a first-week rookie does not. Not reliably sourceable, and highly dependent on picking speed. Grower housing where available and free is the main lever on net; otherwise harvest-town rents in short supply during the season eat a large share.
$100–$1,200 upfront to start
Picking and packing apples, cherries, berries and similar crops during a short intense harvest window, usually paid piece rate against an hourly minimum. Domestic workers are legally treated differently from H-2A guest workers on both wages and housing, in ways that cut both directions.
- Term
- 4 wk–12 wk
- Housing
- Not provided
- Airfare
- Not covered
- Selectivity
- Open enrollment
- Age
- 18+
- Citizenship
- Any citizenship
Deadlines
- 2027 harvestrollingRolling / no fixed deadline
Harvest windows are short and crop-specific: Washington cherries roughly June-July, apples roughly late August through October. Hiring is walk-up and rolling right before and during the window, not months ahead. Postings appear on seasonaljobs.dol.gov, where the H-2B/H-2A clearance orders state the exact wage and any housing terms.
Verified 8/26/2026 · www.yakimaherald.com