Tag: workforce

Posted on

H-2A Workers Help from USDA/Dept. of Labor

H-2A workers have been hard to find consistently in agriculture as long as I’ve been covering it, which is the better part of my adult life. I don’t have enough day-to-day experience dealing with this to know why on Earth we can’t seem to figure this out? Any ideas? Please leave a comment and let me know the whole story? And does this news from the USDA and Department of Labor actually help?

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced a partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to help facilitate the identification of foreign and domestic H-2A workers that may be available and eligible to transfer to other U.S. agricultural sector employers to fulfill critical workforce needs within the U.S. under existing regulatory authority during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

H-2A
For as long as I can remember, we’ve been struggling to get enough H-2A workers into the country consistently enough to make sure all our farmers can get their work done. Why can’t we figure this out? (Photo from agnetwest.com)

“Ensuring minimal disruption for our agricultural workforce during these uncertain times is a top priority for this administration,” Secretary Perdue said. “President Trump knows that these H-2A workers are critical to maintaining our food supply and our farmers and ranchers are counting on their ability to work. We will continue to work to make sure our supply chain is impacted as minimally as possible.” 

“American farmers and ranchers are at the frontlines of maintaining the nation’s food supply,” Secretary Scalia said. “In these unprecedented times, it is critical for them to have the workforce they need. This new partnership between USDA and DOL will help support our farmers, ranchers, and American families.” 

Background:USDA and DOL have identified nearly 20,000 H-2A and H-2B certified positions that have expiring contracts in the coming weeks. There will be workers leaving these positions who could be available to transfer to a different employer’s labor certification. The data, available on www.farmers.gov/manage/h2a, includes the number of certified worker positions, the current employer name and contact, attorney/agent name and contact, and the worksite address. This information will be a resource to H-2A employers whose workforce has been delayed because of travel restrictions or visa processing limitations. Employers should be aware that all statutory and regulatory requirements continue to apply. Employers are encouraged to monitor www.travel.state.gov for the latest information and should monitor the relevant Embassy/Consular websites for specific operational information. 

Posted on

The original intent of the SNAP program?

The SNAP program. It’s a polarizing discussion in already divided Washington, D.C. SNAP was a hot topic of discussion during a Senate hearing last week that featured the Secretary of Agriculture.

Sonny Perdue reiterated during a U.S. Senate hearing the need to restore the original intent of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The program’s intent is to be “a second chance, not a way of life.” USDA published a proposed rule to move able-bodied SNAP recipients into the workforce.

The proposed rule aims to make the program into assistance through difficult times, not lifelong dependency. This proposed rule focuses on work-related program requirements for Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents. It would apply to non-disabled people between the ages of 18 and 49, who have no dependents. The rule would not apply to the elderly, the disabled, or pregnant women. Those who are eligible to receive SNAP – including the underemployed – would still qualify.

There haven’t been any statutory changes to the welfare reform legislation of 1996. The Trump Administration feels an abuse of administrative flexibility in SNAP has undermined the ideal of self-sufficiency. President Bill Clinton signed the legislation that instituted work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents.

Then-President Clinton said, “First and foremost, it should be about moving people from welfare to work. It should impose time limits on welfare… It [work] gives structure, meaning and dignity to most of our lives.”

During last week’s Senate hearing, Secretary Perdue talked about work requirements and his proposed rule. He said: “What was accepted by the U.S. Senate and passed was the same bill that’s been there since the beginning of the Welfare Reform regarding the work requirements of 20 hours per week. And what you also passed was not a prohibition, it was no change to the fact that in one section it says that the Secretary may waive that applicability and we plan to do that for the ABAWDs. We think the purpose is to help people move to independency… We should help people when they are down but that should not be interminably.”

“…You all also provided for a 12 percent cushion for states that they could use for any purpose. But, we do not believe in states where unemployment is 4 percent that ABAWDs should be able to stay on food assistance interminably.”

You may click HERE or on the image below to watch Secretary Perdue’s remarks:

SNAP was a hot and divisive topic during a Senate hearing last week in Washington, D.C.

Background:

Congress implemented this work requirement in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act in 1996.

It allowed the Secretary, upon request from a State, to waive the work requirement during times of high unemployment.

The statute provides the Secretary withe authority to determine if an area has an insufficient jobs and qualifies for a waiver. The 2018 Farm Bill did not modify that discretion .