America’s Hidden Workforce

1 minute read
By TIME

Photographer Samantha Appleton explores the world of migrant laborers

Working Man

The laborers in the tomato fields of central Florida prefer to work without gloves because they can pick quicker and therefore earn more.

Life at Home

A documentary about leftist Mexican politician Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador plays on the Zocalo in Mexico City.

Overwhelming Demand

Mexicans wait in the line outside the consular section at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City. Applicant who have been caught trying to cross the border illegally are unlikely to get visas.

Long Wait

A Mexican citizen waits to see a consular officer inside the embassy.

The Verdict

The rejection rate for visas is extremely high.

Detained

Mexicans and Central Americans wait in a holding area for busses that will take them back to the capitals of their respective countries.

The Road North

Illegals discuss ways to jump freight trains at a depot in Tapachula, Mexico.

Family Ties

A young girl enters the room she shares with her aunt, uncle and cousin. Her mother is the cook for the workers in the North Carolina camp.

Opportunity

A couple waits out birth contractions at a Catholic family clinic in Texas. Under current laws, all children born in the U.S. become citizens, regardless of the legal status of the parents.

Tenuous Links

A clerk sells phone cards at a kiosk in Immokalee.

Organized Labor

The Immokalee Coalition of Workers gathers once a week. The Coalition has been instrumental in securing rights for workers at farms that supply Taco Bell and McDonald's.

Newcomer

A tobacco worker arrives for guest worker orientation at a farm in North Carolina.

Sick

A worker suffering from pesticide poisoning rests in a dorm in Immokalee.

Arrest

Workers watch the police arrest an American man outside a bar in Immokalee for alleged theft. Local police say the laborers try to keep a low profile and cause little trouble.

Rite of Passage

A young girl attends a Quinciañera, a traditional coming-of-age celebration for 15-year-old Mexican girls.

Family

Migrants and their children attend an Easter service in Immokalee.

Hope

A young man prays at the Easter service.

Field Work

Many produce companies in Central Florida employ Mexican and Central American workers who have seemingly legitimate papers and social security numbers yet admit to crossing the border illegally on foot.

Undocumented

Workers rest in a camp provided by an employer. The camps are often raided for unsanitary conditions, but are rarely shut down.

Early to Work

Migrants are picked up in downtown Immokalee, Fla., as early as 4 a.m.

Lunch Break

A snack wagon services the fields around Immokalee.

Time to Relax

A worker eats dinner at a camp on a Christmas tree farm in North Carolina.

Living Quarters

Laborers at this camp in North Carolina share a kitchen.

Marking Time

The crowded trailers at this camp in Florida lack air conditioning, so the workers prefer to spend as much time as possible outside.

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