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Below you'll see everything we could locate for your search of “wages”
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reported that three Arcadia citrus labor contractors failed to comply with the federal H-2A agricultural worker visa program, shortchanging employees $72,609 in total wages. The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division found that Benjamin M. Ramirez Harvesting Inc., AO Harvesting LLC and Gustavo Cisneros Harvesting Inc. failed to provide H-2A employees with at least three-quarters …
Citrus Australia is preparing a program to improve education opportunities and employment pathways in the citrus industry, as well as in wider horticulture. Citrus Australia CEO Nathan Hancock said the industry is committed to forming a deeper partnership with education providers to ensure students are aware of the diverse career pathways in the citrus industry. “Currently there is a huge …
Despite a decrease in citrus production, the Florida citrus industry contributed more value to the state of Florida in 2019-20 than the previous season. According to a study conducted by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), the industry had an economic impact of $6.762 billion to the state and supported more than 33,300 jobs. The …
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is engaged in an education and enforcement initiative to increase compliance with federal labor laws in the Southeast’s agricultural industry. In addition to enforcement activity, the initiative provides compliance assistance to employers and educates workers and other stakeholders. The division is working with industry stakeholders in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, …
A federal judge has blocked the H-2A wage freeze that the Department of Labor (DOL) announced in November. The DOL decision would have kept H-2A wages at 2020 rates through 2022. Last month, United Farm Workers (UFW) and the UFW Foundation filed a suit to block the DOL rule. U.S. District Judge Dale Drozd granted the injunction preventing DOL from …
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association (FFVA) commended the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for extending the 2020 Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) for the H-2A program through 2022. The vast majority of Florida citrus is harvested by temporary foreign workers in the H-2A program. “We applaud the agency for recognizing that the …
California citrus growers may soon face even more water hardships, according to a report by University of California, Berkeley economists David Sunding and David Roland-Holst. The report shows that the lack of responsible, balanced water reforms will lead to the loss of up to 20 percent of today’s working farms. According to data released by California State Assemblyman Jim Patterson, …
Harvesting labor availability has reportedly been adequate so far this season for the Florida citrus industry. However, it could become an issue as some foreign workers under the federal H-2A program leave to work in other industries or to harvest other crops. Several Florida citrus growers and association executives recently addressed the labor situation. “As our season winds down, it …
The California citrus industry is valued at nearly $3.5 billion with over 3,000 growers farming 320,000 acres throughout the state. The size and scale of citrus production has both direct and indirect effects on California’s overall economy. “If you think about primary production, which citrus is, it requires that the citrus growers buy what’s called ‘intermediate inputs’ or inputs from …
At the recent general session of Citrus Expo, AgSafe President and CEO Amy Wolfe discussed emerging issues in ag labor and food safety. One of the topics she covered was the federal Ag and Legal Workforce Act that was introduced in Congress on July 18. The new bill is an effort to combine the existing agricultural guestworker program, H-2A, with …
The total economic impact of California’s citrus industry is $7.117 billion according to a new study commissioned by the Citrus Research Board (CRB). “In updating our economic analysis, we selected a well-known expert, Bruce Babcock, Ph.D., a professor in the School of Public Policy at the University of California, Riverside, to conduct the research. His findings quantified the significant impact …
Editor’s note: This article is part of the special coverage on the 100th Anniversary of the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center, found in the October 2017 issue of Citrus Industry magazine. By Tom Nordlie Although it’s difficult to predict future events, directors of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) …
By Skyler Simnitt, Gulcan Onel and Derek Farnsworth In an environment where citrus is still mainly harvested by hand and skilled domestic workers are harder to employ, employers increasingly rely on the H-2A guest-worker program to establish and retain a reliable and efficient workforce. It is estimated that guest workers now account for 80 percent or more of all citrus …
By Fritz M. Roka The number of H-2A foreign guest workers employed in Florida’s agricultural operations has grown from 4,400 in 2009 to nearly 23,000 by the start of the 2015 citrus harvesting season, more than a five-fold increase (Figure 1). More H-2A workers came to Florida in 2015 than to any other state. Industry leaders estimate that more than …
By Jaci Shreckengost The H-2A program is a guest-worker program that allows people from other countries to come to the United States on a visa as agricultural employees for temporary, seasonal work. Many industries are beginning to use H-2A due to uncertainty over the domestic labor supply, says Fritz Roka, an associate professor of agriculture economics at the University of …
By Ariel Singerman and Stephen H. Futch Uncertainty can be defined as imperfect knowledge, and risk as uncertain consequences, particularly unfavorable consequences. To take a risk then is to expose oneself to a chance of loss, in some cases expecting a gain in return. Many decisions in agriculture involve risk and uncertainty. Risk management is concerned with reducing the possibility …
By Gülcan Önel and Derek Farnsworth The U.S. agricultural sector has a long history of dependence on foreign workers, and the Florida citrus industry is no exception. Even though mechanical harvesting systems saw increased usage between 1999 and 2006, the discovery of citrus greening in 2005 and its subsequent spread across Florida virtually eliminated mechanical harvesting efforts by 2015 in …
As an agricultural employer, you face many business challenges and you must comply with a number of employment-related laws every day, especially if you work with labor-intensive crops. Ensuring that your employment policies and pay practices comply with the law not only helps you avoid liability for potential labor violations, but keeps your workforce productive and motivated. Simply stated, complying …
