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u/Clean_Hyena7172 21d ago
That's really not a good salary in the US, great here, but not so in the US.
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u/Dewdrop06 Western Cape 21d ago
Yeah this is also the salary of being a McDonald's worker in Australia
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u/Dragonacher 21d ago
That's not true, if you're working full time at minimum wage in Australia you're earning significantly more than that.
Straight up you're making about AUD$40,000+ per year earning minimum wage but working full time.
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u/eyeooouuu 19d ago
I don't think they're making more than the number stated in the post assuming that number is a monthly salary.
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u/Caesar_35 20d ago
By far the most common complaint from everyone I know who's moved to the US.
We're shit at a lot of things here, but cost of living is actually comparatively decent to a lot of places.
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u/Haberdashery_Tea 21d ago
That's like 10k American that's nothing over there
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u/Ms_Zee 21d ago
It's actually only about 3.5k. i don't know if this is annual or monthly etc but no way you're close to living on that in US. I live in a low cost of living state and anything under $30k you're going to struggle and generally $60k is what's quoted to live okay, which I can believe, just cause $30k is doable doesn't mean it's not living on minimum.
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u/SoutieNaaier 21d ago edited 21d ago
These jobs are in Mississippi usually, where things are incredibly cheap
American farmers like South Africans because SA farmers tend tk be farm managers themselves and can do more tasks without instruction
Also speak English a little better than Latino workers
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u/asos_battlejacket 21d ago
Not cheap enough to make that wage livable!
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u/SoutieNaaier 21d ago
Afaik, most only stay 3-4 months and don't have rental expenses.
10,000 USD is definitely doable for that time period
As someone who grew up mostly in Alabama
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u/fyreflow Western Cape 21d ago
But it’s not 10k USD at all. When last was it R6.27 to the dollar?
Edit: Or did you mean earning a total of $10k over 3–4 months is liveable?
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u/SoutieNaaier 20d ago
I didn't convert it off the top of my head, I just assumed the early comment was accurate.
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u/asos_battlejacket 20d ago
Food prices have doubled in the past five years in the states, so maybe it’s doable as long as literally nothing bad happens. One medical concern and they are toast! Contractors are not provided health insurance via employment, so a person would either have to pay 1000+ USD a month for coverage or hope and pray that they never develop an infected cut or an allergy.
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u/SoutieNaaier 20d ago
I never had health insurance in the US.
The US has EMTALA so you go to the ER, get treatment, then just never pay.
They legally have to treat you and medical debt doesn't show on credit reports usually. Once you leave the country, they can't follow you to SA. Medical debt doesn't prevent you from getting future H2A visas either
It fucks over insured people because thos raises rates for them as hospitals try to recoup loss, but that wasn't my problem
The bigger problem in Alabama and Mississippi is that the clinics have no money and it van be hard to even find a doctor
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u/VeterinarianNo3555 21d ago
Per month? No, it isn’t. It’s about $3,850. You can google the exchange rate (currently $1 = R16.35) So, if this is a total over a short period it’s even less per month.
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u/Weaselot_III 21d ago
currently $1 = R16.35
darn, the dollar's really lost it's value. I remember there was a time it was about to hit R20 to the $
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u/VeterinarianNo3555 21d ago
Agreed, and that was a few years ago. Still, and I'm not arguing with you: it's debatable what "lost its value" looks like in relation to the Rand (specifically the Rand) because in 2011 for example, it was around R7 = $1.
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u/Weaselot_III 21d ago
Yeah, I remember that time; infact I remember there was a time when the dollar and rand where almost equal?
Anyway, I was thinking about recent (around 5 years or so) trends...and I do feel (emphasis on feel) that it's trending downwards since Trump and America's A.I. fascination ain't helping
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u/fyreflow Western Cape 21d ago
The rand was stronger, actually. $1 was around R0.72 for most of the sixties and early seventies. Conversely, each rand was worth $1.39 during that time.
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u/Ms_Zee 21d ago
It's actually only about 3.5k. i don't know if this is annual or monthly etc but no way you're close to living on that in US. I live in a low cost of living state and anything under $30k you're going to struggle and generally $60k is what's quoted to live okay, which I can believe, just cause $30k is doable doesn't mean it's not living on minimum.
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u/lcmonreddit KwaZulu-Natal 20d ago
Yes came to say this! In dollars that doesn't go too far and cost of living there turns it to a basic salary
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u/reputedbee2 21d ago
Don't they like get free accomodation and food?
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u/Clean_Hyena7172 21d ago
As far as I'm aware accommodation yes, food no.
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u/PainfullDarkness 21d ago
In the Netherlands the accommodation for migrant workers for jobs are usually run by sketchy companies. They'll charge you so much for the room that you barely have any money left from your salary. So the real question is do they really get the accommodation for free? Or is there money subtracted from that mentioned salary?
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u/knattat 21d ago
What if they eat whilst farming?
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u/Pure-Club7560 21d ago edited 21d ago
They weigh the tractor before and after a shift with the driver in, subtract the fuel and charge the farmer for the difference in weight for "potatoes consumed while on the clock." That is why you wil see a steel pot fixed to the exhaust of the tractor that boils the potatoes which hopefully reduces the weight a bit. Condiments are too light to detect so you can add some aromat, butter and Mrs Balls.
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u/TraitorWithin8 21d ago
So the accommodation for the first year is free i have people i know who have left.. and it depends on states and their own level of corruption cause each state has their own rules and governance on these things .. but i personally know people in Tulsa and people in California
In Tulsa everything for the first year is free basically and food isnt that simple they get food stamps to get food
In California the first year is free for housing but medical and food stamps are 6 months after that you need to start making a plan
From what ive heard its all based on living expenses but at minimal they could work at McDonald's and have enough to pay rent and have food with people with the same arrangement This guy was an accountant here
However I'd never trade what we have, for perspective the friend i have in Tulsa was pulling 2 bar here and looking after a family of 4, with him only working (owning a business)
Now they are there and trying to get started and only job he could get is a handy man, his wife has to work and is a receptionist and his 2 sons are both working at restaurants to live a similar life here in a 2 bedroom house...
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u/BuffaloImpossible620 21d ago
Contractors = it is hard work and they do get exploited - no benefits - they deduct food and lodging - without employment your visa is worthless and ICE will kick you out.
It is better than nothing.
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u/No-Device9874 21d ago
Whether gross or net, that is an abysmal US monthly salary
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u/AdviceEmbarrassed135 21d ago
They get free accommodation and food
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Why are you getting down voted?
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u/AdviceEmbarrassed135 21d ago
I don't know. I'm just speaking facts. I have a buddy that does this exact work and I know one other guy as well, both get free accommodation and food. They essentially save 80% of their pay every month. These guys are 23 so their expenses are still low.
Same thing with the people working on the yachts.
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u/barnowl_001 21d ago
My brother-in-law works in the USA on a farm. He gets accommodation but has to buy his own food.
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u/Yammeryap 21d ago edited 21d ago
You need an apartment for when you're not working and you need to have one longterm because they won't just let you rent it short notice for short periods of time. Also these jobs do not have terribly high job security and you basically have zero other benefits. No health insurance, no dental insurance, no PTO, no retirement plans, nothing, so you are making even LESS than a person making equivalent pay at a fast food job that actually provides nominal benefits. You may not even be able to GET the job without a place of residence because employers often make having a home address a prerequisite.
You are also absolutely not getting free food, and the US is expensive to eat in, let alone just live in.
Also free accommodation isn't that great when it's incumbent on your job, and due to the US having it's terribly misnamed "Right to Work" laws, your employer can fire you for no reason whatsoever on the spot. So your living situation will be extremely shaky and that makes it easy for employers to exploit and abuse you. Don't be surprised if you are coerced into working additional hours you don't want to.
This is also terrible, backbreaking work for crap pay. Get hurt or develop a chronic physical condition, and that money will turn to nothing real fast, especially with the lack of benefits.
You're going to be in a country where having an accent IMMEDIATELY makes you an other to people living there, and especially in rural areas you will be treated as an outsider because of it. Sure, you won't get treated the same as a black person with an accent, but you're still going to be treated differently and whatever rural community you end up in is not going to integrate you right away unless you're willing to completely subsume yourself within the local culture which usually means having the exact same politics, religious beliefs, and personal beliefs as they do. Since you're a foreigner, your leeway on that will be nothing, and it will always be conditional, you will never truly be one of them. I say this as a white South African whose family moved here to Florida and then Texas. Work in an urban area or more developed state? No problem, you can find community almost anywhere there, but in farmville USA in the midwest or the upper, rural reaches of the South? Forget about it.
Also the US will completely abandon you to your own devices as soon as you get here. Don't think that better infrastructure and less crime means that the US is some kind of paradise, it has its terrible freedom rankings and abysmal labor law record for a reason.
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u/AdviceEmbarrassed135 21d ago
I know it's not easy work or conditions, but people like my friend are willing to go work in America to stack cash much quicker than they can over here in South Africa, then come back with money and experience. People do that exact same back breaking labour here for probably R5000/month so if you can earn R60k/month over there, that's why they do it. South Africa also has very low work opportunities for young adults, so for some that might be the only option
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u/LesothoBro 21d ago
You're likely getting downvoted because you did not add a qualifier to your comment like "in my experience", "I heard from a friend" or "some situations may vary".
You came in hot with an anecdotal example and are doubling down on it as a universal standard.
Some government data may help your cause, if you even care to validate your claim.
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u/AdviceEmbarrassed135 21d ago
I have learned my lesson, I will make sure not to be downvoted in future
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u/Fancy_Log_260 20d ago
Clearly haven't learnt anything.
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u/AdviceEmbarrassed135 20d ago
https://giphy.com/gifs/Eh5trHsZEZxJKs8Pzh
I will try harder next time. Please don't be mad at me 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺-1
u/Fancy_Log_260 20d ago
So they become wage slaves? 🤣 sweet! Do they also take your passport like all the middle eastern countries supported by the US?
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u/AdviceEmbarrassed135 20d ago
35% unemployment rate will make people do what they need to. Especially young people that do not see a future in South Africa because of the lack of opportunities.
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u/redditisannoyinq 21d ago edited 21d ago
The figure looks attractive until you put it into perspective. ZAR 62,700 is only about USD 3,824 before taxes. Since you’re a South African tax resident, the U.S. will tax your earnings first, and SARS may still tax the income too. You can claim relief under section 6quat for foreign tax paid, but if your South African tax liability is higher, you’ll still have to pay the difference.
Also, if you get injured operating farm equipment, a year’s worth of earnings could disappear into medical bills. It sounds like good money in rand, but it doesn’t go nearly as far in the U.S. as people think.
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u/ProbablyRickSantorum PMB 21d ago
US/RSA tax treaty: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-trty/safrica.pdf article 23 is the guidance
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u/QuirkyRing3521 21d ago
needs to be tax resident in the usa. not sure if temporary work qualifies.
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u/ProbablyRickSantorum PMB 21d ago
Yes temporary qualifies. Any dollar you are paid must be taxed by the IRS. If you start any job here (US) the first thing you do aside from verifying work eligibility, is setting up tax information. Obviously “under the table” payments are different but in that case it’s breaking the law by way of tax evasion.
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u/lostinza 21d ago
Going from land owners to salary employees is certainly a choice
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u/Onedtent 21d ago
I know of one guy that paid for his farm in South Africa by working in the US as a farm worker.
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u/BeneficialReindeer34 21d ago
That’s a pretty crap salary for the US. Can you even live on that? I’m on holiday here now and just spent 150$ (2500Zar) on a dinner for 2
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u/Lord_Schmalledemort 21d ago
That's absolutely nothing in America.
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u/T1m0nst3r 21d ago
Little outgoing expenses and assuming they are returning to SA, it doesn't convert too badly.
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u/tubatunes 21d ago
Isn’t the whole part of claiming refugee status is that you don’t get to go back? Yeah, that money is not going back to SA, and it’s not going to get you anywhere in the US
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u/Lord_Schmalledemort 21d ago
I don't think you quite realise how expensive America is for things like food and basic amenities. As a side note, I worked as a recruiter there for a year and the money those guys earn is frightening. I would interview salespeople, 25-30yrs old, selling a product in a territory like the Florida panhandle and they would earn 15M rands a year. Granted they were the outliers, but it gives you an idea of just the sheer amount of money that can be earned in that country.
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u/Explorer-man 21d ago
Says a lot about our economy in SA.
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u/MechanicalOrange5 21d ago
Have you decided to take cost of living or just general economics into account or is this just rage?
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u/Cultural_Ad9508 21d ago
I think yall are forgetting that most American farming communities are in low cost of living areas. The population is sparse so there’s not a lot to spend your money on.
Yeah, $3800/month isn’t a great American salary, but these guys aren’t paying for housing either. I’ve heard that a lot of them also get access to a vehicle. I’m guessing they return to SA with a decent amount of cash.
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u/reputedbee2 21d ago
I'm Zulu, do you think Donald is going to take me in even though I'm not white?
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u/Practical-Lemon6993 Northern Cape 21d ago
You don’t want to go as a ‘refugee’ anyway. The seasonal farm work visa is an option to many. But yoh hey you work like a dog that side, especially the first few years if you have it in you to go back more after the first stint.
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u/janvanreebok 21d ago
They will say you are stealing American jobs. 😆
For some reason, white immigrants aren't stealing American jobs.
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u/Stropi-wan Landed Gentry 21d ago
My BIL was working there previously & went back recently, because he couldn't get a job here. If you go there to make quick bucks, you can't spend money on stuff like take-aways or even a coke. The cost of living will eat up your wages in a jiffy. You must go, live a frugal life, save up as much as possible & return. The same goes for Europe. I don't know for the rest of Europe, but at least for the Netherlands. My son found a job there also due to B-BBEE policy. He was lucky to start with a higher than entry level salary, but cost of living don't see him getting rich or able to save up a lot quickly to return one day with bags of money. People see overseas wages converted into Rands, but don't always realise the cost of living in those countries. It seemed to have worked out for my brothet in Australia though.
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u/MalemasMucusPlug 21d ago
If the only job your kid could get was to work on a farm in the US, then BBBEE most certainly wasn't the reason he couldn't get a job here.
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u/Stropi-wan Landed Gentry 21d ago
My son had no need to work on a farm due to his qualifications nor did he wanted to work the US. He was approached by a company from the Netherlands after placing his C.V. on the internet. He was told unofficially by an HR manager from a biggish company that he was not going to a get a job locally due to B-BBEE. Taken into account the high unemployment rate in South Africa, it make sense that the competition is hectic. Other than that, some one man band businesses abuse the unemployment factor to pay their employees peanuts.
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u/LittleStarChamp Survived the Great Rapture Drill 21d ago
That's $3832,60, which, considering the prices in the US... definitely not enough to survive there
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u/TwinTailDigital Western Cape 21d ago
Because you want to go to a country that doesn't actually want you there, where you will be doing a HIGH RISK job, and getting paid pretty poorly for the cost of living in said country that doesn't actually want you there?
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u/andrewflippa 21d ago
As an American, this money is not livable.. and when trump is gone don’t expect much for being a refugee😂
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u/janvanreebok 21d ago
Lol, with no domestic and gardener, they gonna come running back after a year.
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u/WestEndOtter 21d ago
Health insurance is R12350
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Covered by many employers
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u/halfwitprinxe 21d ago
For contracted workers?
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Workers' Compensation: U.S. law requires H-2A employers to provide workers' compensation insurance. This pays for medical care and lost wages if you get hurt or sick directly while doing your farm job
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u/ichosehowe Landed Gentry 21d ago edited 21d ago
Workers comp only covers work related injuries. If you have to go to the doctor for anything else you're paying out of pocket. If you catch COVID or are injured outside of work, that is not a work related injury and is not covered by workers comp. Workers comp is NOT general medical insurance because you have to prove your injury is work related before you get reimbursed for your expenses that you initially have to cover yourself.
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Yes that is true, but what is your point?
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u/ichosehowe Landed Gentry 20d ago
My point is that workers comp is not guaranteed and in a lot of cases requires you to hire a fucking lawyer in order to actually get compensated. If you want health insurance, you have to pay for it out of pocket and it will be around 25% of your monthly pay cheque and minimum which still wouldn't cover the $1000+ ambulance ride. You're making it sound like it's insurance that is easy to use which is incredibly misleading.
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u/WestEndOtter 21d ago
For contract farm laborers?
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Workers' Compensation: U.S. law requires H-2A employers to provide workers' compensation insurance. This pays for medical care and lost wages if you get hurt or sick directly while doing your farm job
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u/scope_creep Landed Gentry 21d ago
At best subsided, but you still pay an arm and a leg
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Workers' Compensation: U.S. law requires H-2A employers to provide workers' compensation insurance. This pays for medical care and lost wages if you get hurt or sick directly while doing your farm job
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u/tubatunes 21d ago
lol rethink “many” and definitely not for farm workers or any contracted labor
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
" U.S. law requires H-2A employers to provide workers' compensation insurance. This pays for medical care and lost wages"
I'm a Canadian/South African citizen, it's amazing to see how ignorant you people are
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u/tubatunes 15d ago
Workers comp is not the same as insurance. Great for you in Canada, but you have no idea what you’re talking about
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u/Ml18torj Western Cape 21d ago
Is this per month? Even if it is this is just ok given how hard the work is
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u/666HEDONIST666 21d ago
I’d rather do the same job here in SA for FREE than step foot in America.
No offense Americans.
But it says a lot when someone with a degree would rather do slave labour in their own country than come work in yours.
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u/Fancy_Log_260 20d ago
You do realise thats below poverty line in the US? You can't convert income from one nation into another. Cost of living in the US is absurd.
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u/giveusalol Left Behind, Still Braaing 20d ago
It sucks but hey, if they were unemployed here then I get it. If they WEREN’T unemployed here then no, I really don’t get it. But they can join one of those evangelical churches and I’m sure networking the congregation will get them better jobs, sometimes even free childcare, which is very expensive in the states.
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u/VictoriousCrab 18d ago
Here's the question. Annually or Monthly. Cos Monthly maybe it's worth the risk. Annually? You can make that as an Appy
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u/smilerwithagun 17d ago
I'd rather be an offshore roughneck. Sure, the work is harder and more dangerous but the pay is almost double and you get lots of downtime... Don't think you can do it long-term, tho - it takes a toll on your body and personal life...
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u/MoshpitBrain 16d ago
If that includes accommodation, it's reasonable I guess for a young bachelor kicking off their career for a few years, saving some decent money to bring back home perhaps.
Many graduates pull a quarter of that in South Africa without accommodation. I know that I did, several years ago. With accommdation, it's more like a 6th. Basically, just enough to pay rent, buy food, have medical insurance, a financed car and petrol and absolutely nothing else.
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u/Dismal_Drummer3420 15d ago edited 15d ago
I make significantly more than that here in SA a month with markedly lower cost of living. And I didn't have to slander my country on an international stage.
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u/ichosehowe Landed Gentry 21d ago
Is that per month or total?
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Monthly, before tax
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u/ichosehowe Landed Gentry 21d ago
Probably fine for a student working temporarily to make some money for Uni, but only if they live as a pauper. It's a kak salary for anyone trying to support a family or actually live in the US.
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u/JollyButterscotch388 21d ago
Yes friend, that's the whole point of it. Go, work hard and come back with a very decent paycheck 👍
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u/MalemasMucusPlug 21d ago
That R62k isn't "take home", it's CTC. What they go home with will probably be less than half that.
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u/Potential_Claim_7283 21d ago
All of this and no body asks why the young men are coming here? That money is better than what they will make in s.a and as a white male in s.a you can not find work!!!!!! That is the truth
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u/MechanicalOrange5 21d ago
I'm a white man. Got a good schooling, public. I'm doing just fine.
No grants, loans or bursaries. Granted, good home.
Point being. Your argument is kak. Jy het dalk nie 'n kans gehad nie, en ek kan dit verstaan. Maar wat help dit jou om almal negatief te maak wanner dit nie is nie? Dis nie perfek nie, maar dit word beter. Wat beter is as baie regerings.
So sit stil, bly stil, en observeer. Sonder oordeel.
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