U.S. To Provide More Seasonal Worker Visas

U.S. to Provide 35,000 more Seasonal Worker Visas, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), said the decision was meant to help American Businesses in need of Workers as the Summer approaches. The number of H-2B Visas is normally capped at 33,000 for Six months of each Fiscal year. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced at the beginning of March, that it had already met the Cap for the Period from April to September.

The H-2B Visa Program allows American Businesses to hire Foreign Workers for Seasonal Jobs like: Amusement Parks, Cleaning Hotel Rooms, Landscaping, Mowing Lawns, and Waiting Tables.

Of the 35,000 additional Visas made available for this Summer, 23,500 will be available to Returning Workers from the last Three years, while 11,500 will be Reserved for Foreign Nationals from: El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras.

While the Expansion is likely to be welcomed by Employers that are looking to fill Lower-Wage Jobs, some Labor Groups, and those who want to Restrict Immigration, argue that the Visa Program takes away Opportunities from American Workers and Depresses Wages.

In order to hire Foreign Workers on an H-2B Visa, Employers must first Prove, to the Labor Department, that they are Unable to find American Workers to meet their needs.

U.S. Businesses as varied as: Amusement Parks, Crab Trappers, Landscaping Companies, and Restaurants, have described how they continue to Struggle to hire Americans to fill Open positions. The Coronavirus Pandemic also Disrupted the Flow of Foreign Workers into the U.S. over the last Two years. But as the Job Market has Rebounded, many Employers have contended with Job Seekers within the U.S. with more Leverage and Less of an appetite for Low-Level Jobs.

“Even with these additional visas, there’s not nearly enough visas for all of the types of workers that employers want to hire on the H-2B program,” said Stephen W. Yale-Loehr, an Immigration Lawyer who Teaches at Cornell Law School. “But in the short term, at least, this is something the administration can do to help immediately.”

In his Statement, Mayorkas acknowledged that Foreign Workers who fill Seasonal Positions could face Exploitation by Employers. He said that the Administration would Crack Down on such Violations. “Recognizing the importance of strong worker protections,” he said, “we will apply greater scrutiny to those employers who have a record of violating obligations to their workers and the H-2B program.”










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker