Making the H-2A Process Easier

Ernie NeffLabor

H-2A
Photo courtesy of the Florida Department of Citrus

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced new features on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farmers.gov website designed to help facilitate the employment of H-2A workers. The vast majority of Florida citrus is harvested by temporary foreign workers employed through the H-2A program.  

“USDA’s goal is to help farmers navigate the complex H-2A program that is administered by Department of Labor, Department of Homeland Security and the State Department so hiring a farm worker is an easier process,” Perdue said.

Here are some new H-2A features on Farmers.gov:

  • A real-time dashboard enables farmers to track the status of their eligible employer application and visa applications for temporary nonimmigrant workers.
  • Log-in information is streamlined so if a farmer has an existing login.gov account he or she can save multiple application tracking numbers for quick look-up at any time.
  • Farmers have easy access to the Department of Labor’s Foreign Labor Application Gateway.
  • Farmers can track time-sensitive actions taken in the course of Office of Foreign Labor Certification’s adjudication of temporary labor certification applications.
  • Farmers can access all application forms online.

See the H-2A information on Farmers.gov here.

Perdue unveiled farmers.gov in 2018. Farmers.gov is a dynamic, mobile-friendly public website combined with an authenticated portal where customers can apply for programs, process transactions and manage accounts.

A temporary final rule change to some H-2A requirements announced in April is intended to help citrus and other agricultural employers avoid disruptions to their labor forces, protect the food supply and lessen impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. The rule change was announced by the Department of Homeland Security with the support of the USDA. Learn more about the temporary final rule change.

Source: USDA

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