H2A and H2B Programs
With at least one-third of the country’s agricultural workers operating here in California, our members understand all too well the importance of retaining a stable and capable workforce. Upwards of 40% of the costs of our labor-intensive specialty crops can be attributed to labor needs due to the lack of mechanical options for farmers.
Lack of Stability
Problem
California agriculture employs roughly 850,000 workers per year. An aging and dwindling domestic workforce have led to significant costs and uncertainty for California producers while existing visa guest worker programs fail to adequately cover this gap.
Solution
Allow immigrant agricultural employees in the U.S. to earn legal residency through continued ag employment. Expand agricultural workforce programs and reduce their costs and complexity to give small family-owned farms a chance to utilize them as well.
Lack of Flexibility
Problem
The existing H-2A program is inflexible, costly, and overly complex. Despite being one of the top states to utilize the program, it represents less than 8% of our yearly workforce. California typically has the highest Adverse Effect Wage Rate (the base hourly rate for H-2A workers) due to its faulty wage calculation method.
Solution
To ensure a reliable future workforce, we need a more streamlined H-2A program that utilizes a sensible AEWR, is open to non-seasonal sectors such as dairy, and is simple and cost-effective enough for smaller farming operations to utilize.
No Portability
Problem
H-2A does not provide a portability option as it is a one-on-one contract between employer and employee. Workers may be needed for several months to just a few weeks each year, depending on the crop and harvest season. Neighboring and regional farmers and H-2A workers would both benefit from added opportunities to share contracted employees.
Solution
Provide the option of visa portability in a workable “at-will” program that allows H-2A (or other guest worker programs) to function the way our current workforce already does. This will provide farmers and farmworkers with more opportunities for shared success.
CAFB’s Recommendations & Requests
With rising costs, an aging workforce, and an unreliable guest worker program, CAFB and its members urge the federal government to use both legislative and executive actions to help improve conditions for farmers, ranchers, and workers. We recommend the following actions:
Pass legislation such as the Farm Workforce Modernization Act
- This legislation has passed the House of Representatives several times and would have reversed the costly increases many producers around the country have seen in recent years.
- Not only would this reduce costs, but it would add permanence and reliability for employers and employees alike, resulting in a stabilized agricultural sector and protecting the many undocumented workers that have supported our nation’s food supply for decades.
Improve Existing Visa Programs
- The H-2A program has grown exponentially over the past decade, increasing from about 55,000 jobs in 2011 to nearly 400,000 in 2024. This growth is borne out of necessity though and not due to the program’s effectiveness.
- A flawed Adverse Effect Wage Rate, increased cost-of-living, and inflation have made this program a last-ditch effort for many farmers before they sell or go out of business.
- We urge agency officials to move swiftly to reduce costs, fix the AEWR calculation, and improve the program in such a way that small and family owned operations can utilize the program as well.
- Create a new year-round guest worker program that sectors such as the dairy industry can begin to use as well. They currently have no access to the H-2A program because of its seasonal limitations.
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