The Department of Labor debarred a Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, farmer from the H-2A agricultural guest worker program for one year on Sept. 14 after a Wage and Hour Division investigation uncovered multiple program violations.
H-2A debarment is the most severe sanction available to the department, blocking an agricultural employer from accessing legal foreign seasonal labor for the duration of the penalty, the DOL said.
The H-2A program allows U.S. agricultural employers to bring foreign workers into the country on temporary visas to fill seasonal labor needs when domestic workers are not available. Employers must meet specific wage, housing and working condition requirements as a condition of program participation.
The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division investigates H-2A employers for compliance with program rules, including payment of the required adverse effect wage rate, provision of adequate housing and adherence to the terms of the job order filed with the department.
The investigation found the Calcasieu Parish employer committed multiple violations of H-2A program requirements, according to the DOL. Specific violation details were included in the department’s enforcement announcement.
Debarment actions serve as enforcement signals to agricultural employers across the country, demonstrating the department’s willingness to impose the program’s most consequential penalty against operators who violate guest worker protections.
The H-2A program has grown substantially in recent years, with more than 370,000 positions certified annually as agricultural employers face persistent domestic labor shortages. Program enforcement ensures that the guest workers filling those positions receive the wages and conditions required by law.
The one-year debarment applies to the named employer and any successors in interest, the DOL said.