Department of Labor rewriting H-2B program

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has launched a series of administrative assaults against the H-2 programs, said Craig Regelbrugge, vice president for government relations and research at ANLA.

"Practically speaking, these temporary and seasonal worker programs – H-2A for agriculture, H-2B for non-agricultural industries like landscaping – are the only safety nets available to such employers when they cannot fill seasonal manual labor jobs with willing and committed American workers," he said.

In the case of H-2B, a new rule mandating a new wage methodology was set to take effect last October 1. The rule would have forced H-2B wage increases commonly reaching 40-70 percent over the prevailing wages the program already mandates. The rule created enough blowback that the DOL delayed it for 60 days, then Congress stepped in and delayed it until Oct. 1, 2012. Litigation is pending, but that threat still looms, he said.

DOL is publishing another final rule that basically rewrites the H-2B program. The rule is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on February 21, with an effective date of April 23, 2012. It makes sweeping changes to most other aspects of the program – how an employer proves they have a seasonal need, how they must advertise, recruit, reimburse expenses, and more.

For ANLA's summary on the new rule, go here: http://www.anla.org/docs/government%20relations/Immigration%20and%20labor/h2b/H2B%20final%20rule_ANLA%20preliminary%20summary.pdf