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DOL Issues Proposed Rule to Bolster Farm Worker Protections


rss.shrm.org | Leah Shepherd

​The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently released a proposed rule to better protect farm workers on H-2A visas against retaliation, add new protections for worker self-advocacy, make foreign labor recruitment more transparent and enhance the department’s enforcement.

The H-2A visa program is for seasonal jobs in agriculture, while the H-2B program is for seasonal jobs outside of agriculture.

The proposed rule would make new wage rates applicable immediately upon their publication in The Federal Register, rather than weeks later, to ensure that agriculture workers are paid the most up-to-date wages as soon as possible. Employers that fail to provide adequate notice to workers of a delay in their start date would have to pay workers the applicable rate for each day that work is delayed for up to 14 days.

The proposed rule, announced Sept. 12, would clarify that an employer terminates a worker only “for cause” when the worker either fails to meet pre-specified productivity standards or fails to comply with employer policies after the employer applies a system of progressive discipline. The proposal would establish six conditions to terminate a worker for cause, including that the employee has been informed of, or reasonably should have known, the employer’s policy, rule or productivity standards.

“Farm workers are vital to our farmers, our food supply and our communities,” said Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su. “This proposed rule would strengthen protections for H-2A farm…


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