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ETARulemakingETA-2023-0003

Improving Protections for Workers in Temporary Agricultural Employment in the United States

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California Fresh Fruit Association filings
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California Fresh Fruit Association filed 1 comment on this docket between Nov 21, 2023 and Nov 21, 2023. 41 other organizations filed here. The comment window closed 987d ago.

What California Fresh Fruit Association filed (1)

Nov 21, 2023· Comment from California Fresh Fruit Association· ETA-2023-0003-0269

Filed on regulations.gov — full text not in the inline record.

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Abstract

The Department of Labor (Department or DOL) proposes to amend its regulations governing the certification of temporary employment of nonimmigrant workers employed in temporary or seasonal agricultural employment and the enforcement of the contractual obligations applicable to employers of these nonimmigrant workers. The revisions proposed in this notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM or proposed rule) focus on strengthening protections for temporary agricultural workers and enhancing the Department’s capabilities to monitor program compliance and take necessary enforcement actions against program violators. The Department’s proposals to strengthen protections and improve compliance are aimed at ensuring that the Department can better fulfill its statutory responsibility under 8 U.S.C. 1188(a)(1) to certify that (1) there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, and qualified, and who will be available at the time and place needed, to perform the labor or services involved in the petition; and (2) the employment of H-2A workers will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed. The proposed changes include stronger protections for workers who advocate for better wages or working conditions on behalf of themselves and their coworkers, including certain protections for organizing and engaging in concerted activity for the purpose of mutual aid and protection, as well as a new definition of the existing term “terminated for cause” that is intended to ensure that any termination for cause is just and fair. The proposed changes also would require disclosure of additional information about individuals and entities involved in the recruitment of foreign workers and those who manage or supervise workers at a place of employment or own or operate a place of employment included in the H-2A Application for Temporary Employment Certification (H-2A Application), which would enhance transparency in the foreign labor recruitment chain and the Department’s ability to monitor program compliance everywhere that work is performed. The proposed changes also include expedited debarment procedures and revised procedures for applying orders of debarment to successors in interest to debarred employers, agents, and attorneys, both of which would permit the Department to more effectively and expeditiously hold bad actors accountable for violations. In addition, the proposed changes would codify the Department’s test to determine if two ostensibly different employers are in fact a single employer for purposes of assessing temporary or seasonal need and for program compliance. The changes proposed in this NPRM also would enhance worker protections and the enforcement capabilities of the Department’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) by clarifying and revising various regulatory provisions that have been subject to misinterpretation, including prohibitions on passport withholding, and pay disclosure requirements. The proposed changes also would revise the H-2A program regulations and Wagner-Peyser Act regulations to strengthen protections for workers in the event the employer must delay the start date due to unforeseeable conditions like travel delays or crop conditions at the time work is supposed to begin, and to clarify and strengthen the discontinuation of services regulation. Other changes include additional transportation safety requirements and additional disclosures of terms and conditions of employment to agricultural workers.

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Co-filers (41)

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