DOL Issues Rule for New Farm Visa Wage Standard
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued an interim final rule (IFR) implementing a new wage standard for the the H-2A agricultural worker temporary non-immigrant visa program, adopting the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey for non-open range livestock production H-2A job opportunities. DOL’s action follows a decision by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to scrub its long-used wage survey (see USDA Discontinues Survey Used for H-2A Wage Standard, FELS website, September 2, 2025) leaving a regulatory vacuum for H-2A program employers and employees. Several recent employer lawsuits had led federal courts to invalidate all or parts of Biden Administration DOL H-2A program regulations that had led to large increases in the H-2A program’s Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) with immediately effective mid-year AEWR increases.
DOL will use OEWS survey data to establish AEWRs applicable to five Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes combining the most common field and livestock worker occupations previously measured by the USDA’s discontinued Farm Labor Survey (FLS). These AEWRs will be divided into two skill-based categories to account for wage differentials arising from qualifications required by employers filing to use the program. DOL will also use the OEWS survey to determine two skill-based AEWRs for each SOC code to reflect wage differentials. The application of the skill-based AEWR will be based on the duties performed for the majority of the workdays during the contract period and qualifications sought by employers seeking to use the program.
To address differences in compensation between most U.S. workers and H-2A workers who receive employer-provided housing at no cost, the IFR implements a standard adjustment factor to the AEWR to account for this non-monetary compensation that employers will apply when compensating H-2A workers.
DOL estimates these changes will save H-2A employers $2.46 billion annually and $17.29 billion over a 10-year period. The resulting AEWR for California will be $16.45, compared to the current $19.87.
