On March 13th, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis announced that the Department of Labor would be suspending regulations that the Bush administration introduced in December to make it easier and cheaper for agricultural employers to use foreign workers in temporary jobs. According to the NYTimes,
Last year, tens of thousands of foreign workers were brought in under the temporary agricultural program, known as H-2A, harvesting lettuce, sweet potatoes, tobacco, cucumbers, sugar cane and other crops. The new rules cut the wages that many of these workers will receive and reduced the amount that growers had to reimburse these workers for their travel. They also eased administrative burdens by letting employers simply attest that they had met various program requirements.
According to an article from ABCNews, the suspension became effective on May 29th. On June 9, groups including the North Carolina Growers’ Association, the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, the National Council of Agricultural Employers and other groups filed suit against the Department to stop the suspension. According to Southeast AgNet, “The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, alleges that newly appointed Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis violated the Administrative Procedure Act in her efforts to withdraw the present H-2A rule.” On June 29th, the court “agreed with plaintiffs that the Department of Labor did not follow the Administrative Procedures Act in suspending Bush administration reforms to the H-2A agricultural guest worker program. What’s more, the court said the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on the merits of the case against the Department of Labor,” according to The Packer, an industry newsletter. As a result, the court granted a preliminary injunction reinstating the program.
The case is titled North Carolina Grower’s Association, Inc. et al. v. Hilda L. Solis, et al, 09 CV 411. For a copy of plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction, click here. For more information about the case, click here, and to read the opinion, click here.
Posted 7/2/09
