When OneAmerica, originally called Hate Free Zone, was formed by U.S. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, prior to her current role, it was “in response to anti-immigrant hate,” according to the organization’s website.
However, Congresswoman Jayapal’s recently filed bill titled “Protect U.S. Farmworkers Act,” is decidedly anti-immigrant. Ostensibly the goal is to restrict the number of H-2A farmworker visas issued each year but, really, it looks like a bill to force unionization of farmworkers.
This bill offers nothing but a way to rob H-2A visa holders of their hard-earned money and give it to unions.
In 2024, there were nearly 400,000 H-2A farmworker visas approved during the growing season, about 315,000 were issued. Unlike other work visas, H-2A visas aren’t limited because they require employers to prove a labor shortage before visas are issued. This need-based approval process requires employers to advertise for local employees a minimum of 60 days prior to applying for visas through the U.S. Department of Labor and further requires employers to hire local applicants even if positions have been filled by H-2A visa-holding farmworkers after work has begun.
Historically, H-2A visa holders have chosen not to join farmworker unions because they are in the United States temporarily. A typical H-2A visa allows farmworkers to remain legally in the U.S. for up to ten months before returning to their home country, making much of what is bargained for by union representatives either void or unattractive to H-2A workers including wages, healthcare, and retirement accounts.
The H-2A program, even under the newly revised Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) rules, requires employers to pay a specific wage to H-2A workers that is separate from the wage paid to the local workforce. The H-2A program requires employers to pay local workers doing the same job the same wage as H-2A visa holders, as the AEWR is typically higher than the local wage. This parity in wages between local farmworkers and H-2A visa holders in Washington state was heralded as a win by some farmworkers who argued the AEWR rules undercut their ability to earn a living. The rules were revised to consider free housing provided by H-2A employers to H-2A visa holders.
In Washington state, long-term care and retirement accounts have carve-outs for H-2A visa holders because they are not permanent residents of the state and cannot access the benefits provided by the state’s versions of these programs. Again, union representation does not offer any benefit for H-2A visa holders.
The number of H-2A visas approved in the last decade has sharply increased because local workers have failed to show up for work or do not have the skills necessary. Indeed, the program is structured to be cost-prohibitive. Agricultural employers in the U.S. are supposed to be discouraged by the regulatory burdens of participating in the H-2A program. The program cumbersome and costly – from the at least $1,360 per person application fees to the housing costs, the transportation costs and various inspections to pass – there is no easy way to hire employees through the H-2A program.
If Congresswoman Jayapal really wants to protect U.S. farmworkers, there are several things she can do, none of which involve taking money from H-2A visa holders.
The Congresswoman can start by encouraging investment agricultural education for America’s youth. Less than 2 percent of the total U.S. population is involved in food production. Now is the time to change that and it begins in the classroom by getting our young people excited about growing food.
She can also have serious conversations about how to make the H-2A program better by providing pathways to citizenship for long-time farmworkers who have participated in the program for more than a decade and wish to remain in the U.S. permanently.
U.S. farms and farmworkers are suffering from a range of threats but H-2A visa holders are not on the list. Bills that suggest otherwise are not only anti-immigrant, but they are also just plain wrong.
