The H-2A program is a legal non-immigrant temporary worker visa program, which permits agricultural employers to apply for non-immigrant alien workers to perform any type of seasonal or temporary farm work.

A number of federal and state agencies oversee the H-2A program. The three major agencies are the US Department of Labor (USDOL), which issues H-2A labor certifications and oversees compliance with US labor laws; the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS), which approves the H-2A visas; and the State Department, which issues visas to workers at consulates in their countries of origin.

WHO MAY APPLY

Any agricultural employer or group of employers needing temporary or seasonal workers may apply. más can file individual job orders, acting as an agent on behalf of a single employer, or can file master job orders on behalf of a group of employers. Workers can be employed as little as 6 weeks, or as long as 10 and one-half months, depending on the job to be performed. There is no limit to the number of years an employer or worker can participate in the program.

US Department of Labor certification applications and job orders have to be filed no less than 45 days prior to the date of need. In order to ensure that your workers arrive when needed, you must contact más no later than three months prior to the date you need workers.

RECRUITMENT: The employer is required to engage in 'independent recruitment' of US workers. This involves word-of-mouth recruitment, newspaper and radio ads. más will do everything required by regulations, including filing job orders, placing newspaper and radio ads, interviewing workers and all necessary follow up.

WAGES: The USDOL establishes the applicable H-2A wage rate, called the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR), or the state prevailing wage rate. You must pay the higher of these rates to both US and H-2A workers on your payroll.

HOUSING: The employer provides free and approved housing to all workers who are not "local workers".

TOOLS AND SUPPLIES: The employer furnishes all tools and supplies necessary to perform the work at no cost to the worker.

MEALS: The employer provides either free kitchen facilities (including pots/pans) for workers to prepare their own meals or three meals a day. Transportation to town (grocery, bank etc.) must be provided for workers once a week. You may not charge for these services.

TRANSPORTATION: The employer is responsible for three types of worker transportation:

WORKERS COMPENSATION INSURANCE: The employer must provide Workers' Compensation insurance for all workers. Proof of coverage must be included with the application at time of filing.

THREE-QUARTERS GUARANTEE: The employer guarantees each worker employment for a minimum of three-fourths of the total hours in the contract. This guarantee is not figured daily, weekly or monthly but is calculated as a percentage of the entire contract period. (Example: 40 hours per week for 10 weeks=400 total hours, therefore you would guarantee that the workers would have been paid or offered 300 hours by the end of the contract).

más charges a $2,550 non-refundable processing fee for each regular H-2A certification application. This fee covers all advertisements required by the government agencies (up to $500.00), Federal Express shipping charges, telephone, postage costs, and USCIS visa application fees.

In addition to the processing fee, más charges a worker assessment fee based on the number of workers furnished to each MAAHS employer. Employers are invoiced at the following special MAAHS rates after the workers arrive:

• No additional charge for ten or fewer workers
• Orders between 11 and 100 workers=$135 per worker
• Orders over 100 up to 250 workers=$120 per worker
• Orders over 250 up to 400 workers=$110 per worker
• Orders over 400 workers = $100 per worker

Workers not from "preferred foreign sources" - An employer may request that más use workers' agencies or consulates other than its "preferred foreign sources." There is a $200 surcharge for each such agency and consulate.

Rush or emergency applications - más reserves the right to charge an additional $700 fee for employers who file applications less than 60 days in advance of the date of need.

Department of Labor Fees - The USDOL charges an H-2A certification fee of $100 plus $10/worker (maximum of $1000). más bills this USDOL fee back to the H-2A employers.

Excess newspaper advertising expense - If the newspaper and radio advertisements required by government agencies as part of "positive local recruitment" exceed $500 total cost, the excess is billed as an extra cost.

You may contact más direct (434) 263-8790, solutions@maslabor.com, or www.maslabor.com.

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Join MAAHS to become eligible for this program.