Source: RURAL MIGRATION NEWS, UC DAVIS, 1/12/21


The H-2A program is in the spotlight for several reasons. First, the number of jobs certified and H-2A visas issued reached record highs in FY20 despite high US unemployment rates. DOL certified over 275,400 jobs to be filled with H-2A workers in FY20, and DOS issued over 213,300 H-2A visas. Between 75 and 80 percent of DOL certifications result in H-2A visas.

The top five H-2A states, Florida, Georgia, Washington, California, and North Carolina, accounted for over half of all H-2A job certifications. Employers specify the occupation or title of the job they want to fill with H-2A workers. In FY20, over 88 percent of the jobs certified were for crop farm workers, six percent were for equipment operators, and four percent were for animal farm workers.
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The H-2A program allows US farmers who anticipate too few seasonal US workers to apply to DOL for certification to recruit and employ guest workers. In order to receive certification, farm employers must satisfy three major criteria, they must try and fail to recruit US workers, offer free and approved housing to guest workers and out-of-area US workers, and pay the state’s Adverse Effect Wage Rate of $12 to $16 an hour in the US in 2020, higher than federal, state, or local minimum wages.

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