On Dec. 1, the Department of Labor published a proposed rule that would amend its regulations regarding certain provisions of the H-2A program. Among the many changes in the proposed rule are revisions to the methodologies used to determine the Adverse Effect Wage Rate. Rather than a single AEWR for all H-2A workers within a region, DOL has proposed AEWRs by agricultural occupation. The proposal reflects the department’s concern that the current AEWR methodology for field and livestock workers (combined) may have an adverse effect on the wages of workers in higher-paid agricultural occupations, such as farmworker supervisors and construction laborers on farms. Following the methodology supplied by DOL in the proposed rule, this Market Intel will look at what the proposal means for farms utilizing the H-2A program.
CURRENT PROCEDURES
The current AEWR is based on data from the Farm Labor Survey, a USDA survey conducted in January, April, July and October of each year that provides estimates of the number of hired workers, average hours worked and wages paid to workers employed on U.S. farms. Hired workers include field workers, livestock workers, supervisors, administrative employees and other workers employed directly by farmers. Field and livestock workers include employees who operate farm equipment. The FLS excludes contract workers who are paid by a crew leader, contractor, buyer, processor, cooperative or other person who has an oral or written agreement with a...
A man has filed a lawsuit against his ex-girlfriend, a longtime Detroit police officer, claiming she fabricated stalking charges that landed him in jail before the case was dismissed. In a 24-page,...