The growth of the sugar and alcohol production due both to the increase in the use of alcohol fuel in Brazil, as well to meet the external demand, and because of the growth in exports of sugar, brings great prospects for the sugar alcohol sector. However, the ban of sugar cane burning as a method of detrash, does accelerate the mechanization of the harvest, with negative impacts on the number of employees of sugarcane production, since jobs will be created in the sugar industry and the alcohol, but there will be a greater reduction in the agricultural area. In addition, there will be change in the profile of the farm worker, currently of low schooling. In 2005, according to the PNAD, there were 519,197 employees in the culture of sugar cane in Brazil, whose school average was 3.9 years of study, 70% had up to four years of study, and of these, 154,598 can be considered illiterate (up to 1 year of study). Considering the fact that many workers are migrants from poorer states of Brazil, highlights the need for public policy at the place of origin, given the scenario of reduction of demand for workers with low education.
labor market; sugar-cane burning prohibition; harvesting mechanization; social indicators
