With over 500 agricultural organizations now endorsing the Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) says he is “very optimistic” about this bill to expand the H-2A program to year-round workers.
“The opposition that’s out there is based on just biases and misinformation,” Thompson told host Chip Flory on AgriTalk. “I wish we could get American workers to fill these jobs, but that is not reality today. We should legislate to reality, not to emotion.”
U.S. agriculture faces a severe labor shortage, points out the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), which has increased its reliance on agricultural guest workers. While the H-2A visa program helps address some of the labor issues, currently it cannot be utilized by sectors of agriculture that rely on year-round workers.
From “Seasonal” to “Temporary”
One of the big changes in the bill is the removal of the seasonal element.
“We eliminated the term ‘seasonal,’ and replaced it with’ temporary,’” Thompson says. “Temporary is defined as less than 350 days a year. We also made it so it was renewable up to three years. That was a key component of this and would allow for year-round operations in dairy, greenhouses, livestock and some processing as well as the processing of farm commodities.”
Thompson believes this will help H-2A workers feel more comfortable and confident to go home when needed.
“Maybe it’s for a birth of a of a child or grandchild. Maybe it’s for a wedding. Maybe it’s for a graduation. Maybe it’s for a funeral,” Thompson says. “I think this is very consistent with what our producers need. But it’s also what these workers need as well.”
Key Things to Note in Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act
In addition to expanding the H-2A visa program to year-round agricultural workers, Thompson’s bill would:
- Modify what is considered “agriculture labor or services” to address the needs of the livestock sector, including certain meat processing activities, and transfer the authority to further define the term to the Secretary of Agriculture
- Codify Adverse Effect Wage Rate calculation standards to lower costs and provide stability in farmworker pay rates
- Streamline the program through the allowance of multi-year housing certifications and lower costs by allowing maximum daily housing charges that employers can deduct from workers’ wages
- Establish one streamlined H-2A application processing system through the creation of an internet-based electronic portal
Pork Production Employment is Declining
Despite higher wages and competitive benefits, NPPC says pork production employment has declined over the past several years.
“The sad fact is that American citizens just don’t want to do this type of work,” Thompson says about agricultural labor in general. “It pays well, but it’s hard work. There was a time when we’d have a lot of high school kids seek these positions, and that’s just not the case today. The reality is our country will have to import. Now we’ll either import our food supply, or we’re going to import our workforce.”
NPPC says it strongly supports Thompson’s bill, which would help address these workforce challenges.
“Agriculture needs a strong – and reliable – workforce,” says NPPC President Rob Brenneman, a pork producer from Washington County, Iowa. “For pork producers, one giant step in the right direction means expanding the H-2A visa program to include year-round agricultural industries like ours.”
