DHS Funding Bill Would Displace Even More American Workers

In an alternative universe – otherwise known as Capitol Hill – the 8.9 million largely low- and unskilled, illegal migrants who have poured across our borders since President Biden took office is still not enough to satisfy the insatiable demands of the U.S. business lobby for low-wage labor. As legislators race to approve some funding mechanism to keep our federal government operating past 11:59 pm on Saturday, they have somehow managed to find the time and the chutzpah to champion provisions that will massively expand the number of temporary low-skilled guest workers that will be available to business interests.

A provision inserted to benefit non-agricultural employers would blow the lid off the 66,000 annual cap on H-2B guest workers by exempting returning visa holders from counting against that limit, as though they won’t have the same harmful impact on similarly skilled American workers if they’ve been here before. The powerful agriculture lobby, which carries clout among both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, is also poised to get some goodies. Agricultural employers already have access to an unlimited number of H-2A guest workers, yet somehow – they are demanding more. And, in a rare instance of bipartisanship, Congress seems prepared to give it to them.

First off, they want an end to the temporary or seasonal nature of the H-2A program. The program aimed to ensure that farmers had access to workers to harvest time-sensitive crops when they became ripe. Produce doesn’t wait around. Sectors of the agricultural industry, such as dairy and sheepherding that are neither seasonal nor temporary have not had access to the H-2A program. Livestock need to be tended to all year long and in a fixed location – making those jobs more attractive to U.S. workers, provided the wages and working conditions are competitive. All agricultural industry sectors have resisted paying living wages, much less competitive ones, and are prepared to flex their political muscle to ensure they never will.