Crop production worker
Also called farm hand, crop worker, farm worker
Crop production workers carry out practical activities and assist in the production of agronomical crops.
What you'd do
Mixed crop and livestock farm labourers · ILO- Digging and shovelling to clear ditches or for other purposes
- Loading and unloading supplies, produce and other materials
- Raking, pitching and stacking straw, hay and similar material
- Watering, thinning and weeding crops by hand or using hand tools
- Picking fruit, nuts, vegetables and other crops and collecting eggs
- Planting and harvesting field crops, such as rice, by hand
- Feeding, watering, and cleaning animals and keeping their quarters clean
- Monitoring livestock, reporting on their condition
- Assisting with herding, droving and separating livestock for milking, shearing, transportation or slaughter, and between pastures
- Grading, sorting, bunching and packing produce into containers
- Performing minor repairs on fixtures, buildings, equipment and fences
- Mostly outdoors
- A mix of sitting and standing
- Some contact with people
- Some freedom to decide
- Often more than 40 hours a week
- Deadlines most weeks
- Varied tasks, little repetition
Will there be jobs?
Limited prospectsFewer jobs than in most work will need filling by 2035.
Solid: measured. Dashed: forecast.
What does it pay?
Below averagePay depends a lot on the country: from about €700 a month (Bulgaria) to €3,800 (Denmark), before tax.
Pick a country at the top of the page to see typical pay there, for people under 30, and compared with all jobs.
Among elementary occupations in the EU, women earn 9% less per hour than men. Elementary occupations · Eurostat
What do I need to study?
Basic schoolingMost people start with basic schooling and learn on the job.
Pick a country at the top of the page to see where to study and the official course finders.
Will AI change it?
Very littleAI could help with only small parts of the tasks.
Average task score 0.11 on a scale from 0 (AI can't do it) to 1 (AI could do it fully).
See the score for each of the 11 tasks
Based on what AI could technically do when assessed in 2025. It is not a forecast for a future year, and not a forecast of job losses. Scores for mixed crop and livestock farm labourers. Source: ILO (2025), adapted (credits).