Sunday, May 19, 2019

Everything You Need To Know Before Signing Up For An H2A Program

By Shirley Thompson


H-2A programs are highly beneficial to employers within the agricultural sector. They allow them to temporarily hire foreign workers who provide the much needed labor and generally ensure that their profit margins are not impacted. Whether you are an employer in the U. S. Or a foreigner in search of farming jobs in America, there are crucial facts you must understand about the H2A program.

Applying for an H-2A visa has numerous advantages over entering the country illegally. If you are an illegal immigrant, finding legal employment will not be possible because potential employers cannot change your legal status. In case you choose to leave the country, you are likely to be banned from making a reentry for the next 3-10 years. This simply means that you will have chronically reduced your employment chances within America.

With H-2A programs, agricultural employers who are experiencing a seasonal or temporary shortage of labor can employ non-immigrant foreign workers temporarily. Before one can recruit, the farm must be in a position to demonstrate the lack of available labor within the country. This means that you must advertise the position with regard to specific standards. This ascertains that you first get help from available domestic workers.

Employers must continually cooperate with the State Workforce Agency. This is meant to ensure that jobs are first offered to qualified U. S. Citizens who are interested and unemployed. Whether you are the employer or foreign worker in search of employment, you also need to get well acquainted with the rules regarding wages.

Foreign employees are paid as per the Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR). This is commonly known as the prevailing wage rate in the state and the income you will get may depend highly on the position you take up within the farm. Employers on the other hand need to ascertain that H-2A programs do not have a great impact on the income of domestic employees.

For the program to work, employers are obligated to provide housing. Again, there are certain standards that must be met in order to ensure that the foreign workers lead dignified lives. Housing issues are inspected by the state Department of Health or the state Department of Labor and this will highly depend on the number of workers that need housing.

Employers should provide meals or at the very least provide an area where the workers can cook their own food. They are also expected to settle the costs related to transportation into and out of the county. Moreover, foreign workers should be assured of employment and pay for about 75% of the duration stated in their contracts.

The process involved in obtaining foreign manual workers through the H-2A programs is considerably complex. This is why it makes sense to seek help from specialists who understand the systems that are in place. You can find dependable organizations that can provide guidance and first ensure that your farm is eligible to benefit from the program. You will also get dependable assistance with the applications as well as the involved paperwork.




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