Maine's Farmworker Minimum Wage Law Risks Harming Industry, Farmers, and Workers

As Maine moves to mandate a minimum wage for farmworkers, lessons from Oregon, Washington, and Colorado reveal that well-meaning laws can backfire—cutting hours, shrinking earnings, and threatening th

Maine may soon guarantee minimum wage for farmworkers—but at what cost? In states like Oregon and Washington, similar laws slashed worker hours and squeezed small farms. Here’s why Maine’s plan could hurt the very people it’s meant to help.