It is stated that the United States is experiencing in the agricultural sector two simultaneous surpluses which together are referred to as the "farm problem:" these are surpluses of products and labor. The primary reasons for the labor surplus are relatively rapid adoption of technological innovations, the approximation of a competitive market structure which facilitates a "technological treadmill," and lack of an explicit manpower policy related to agriculture. Removing the excess labor from farming appears to be the only currently viable solution; other measures aimed at improving the conditions of agricultural labor are short-run and will eventually lead to reduction of the labor force. Whether or not the policy to move manpower out of agriculture is accepted, analysts agree that there is a need for research which focuses specifically on the agricultural labor force. Occupational mobility studies have served as a useful mechanism through which to perform this research. The paper concludes that two major possibilities exist: conceptual clarification and analysis of the heterogeneous quality of the agricultural labor force. (A six-page bibliography is included.) (Author/BP)