Fresh produce grower groups and industry associations are praising the reintroduction of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, H.R. 1537.
Bill sponsors Reps. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., and Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., say the legislation is desperately needed by both growers and farmworkers.
A two-page summary of the bill is available online.
The lawmakers said in a news release that the bill, which passed the House with bipartisan support in 2019, seeks to provide a compromise solution that makes meaningful reforms to the H-2A agricultural guestworker program and creates a first-of-its-kind, merit-based visa program specifically designed for the nation’s agricultural sector.
“The men and women who work America’s farms feed the nation. But many of them do so while living and working in a state of uncertainty and fear, which has only been heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Lofgren said in the news release.
“Stabilizing the workforce will protect the future of our farms and our food supply. The Farm Workforce Modernization Act accomplishes this by providing a path to legal status for farmworkers and updating and streamlining the H-2A temporary worker visa program while ensuring fair wages and working conditions for all workers.”
Newhouse said in the release that American agriculture is “desperately in need” of a legal, reliable workforce.
“The Farm Workforce Modernization Act is a solution – negotiated in good faith by agriculture groups, labor representatives, and members on both sides of the aisle – that will do just that,” he said in the release. “As one of only a few farmers in Congress, I understand the invaluable contributions our producers and farmworkers make to our nation’s unparalleled agriculture industry. Bringing our agriculture labor program into the 21st century is absolutely critical as we work to recover from the impacts of the pandemic and ensure a stable food supply chain in the United States. We must act now to provide certainty to farmers, ranchers, and farmworkers across the country.”
The bill was negotiated over eight months in 2019, the lawmakers said, with input from farmers, agricultural stakeholders, labor organizations, and farmworker advocates. In December 2019, the legislation became the first agriculture labor reform legislation to pass the House of Representatives since 1986.
Lawmakers said the bill:
- Establishes a program for agricultural workers in the U.S. to earn legal status through continued agricultural employment and contribution to the U.S. agricultural economy;
- Reforms the H-2A program to provide more flexibility for employers, while ensuring critical protections for workers;
- Focuses on modifications to make the program more responsive and user-friendly for employers and provides access to the program for industries with year-round labor needs.
In the 116th Congress, the bill garnered support from over 300 agriculture organizations, and several of those in the produce industry voiced support for its reintroduction.
“The Farm Workforce Modernization Act introduced by Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren and Representative Dan Newhouse is a testament to the efforts the agriculture industry and our friends in labor and of course to the bipartisan members of Congress who are supporting this legislation,” Tom Stenzel, president and CEO of the United Fresh Produce Association, said in a statement. “There remains work to be done to address our industry’s labor challenges, but this bill is an integral first step towards achieving our ultimate goal. United Fresh Produce Association and its members have pushed for this reform for many years and we look forward to working with Congress and the Administration to make it a reality.”
Jim Bair, president of the U.S. Apple Association, called the legislation a “necessary and important first step.” “We thank Reps. Zoe Lofgren and Dan Newhouse and others for reintroducing this meaningful agriculture labor reform that will greatly benefit the U.S. apple industry, which relies heavily on foreign born labor,” Bair said in a statement.
Bair said the bill will “stabilize the current agricultural workforce” by creating a process for them to gain work authorization to continue working in agriculture.
The bill also brings needed modernization and cost containment to the H-2A agricultural guest worker program, Bair said in the statement. “Each year growers coast to coast face uncertainty as to whether there will be sufficient labor to harvest the crop,” he said. “A stable, legal and reliable workforce is critical if we are to continue to have a vibrant domestic apple supply. For these reasons, we urge Congress to pass this legislation so that it can move to the Senate.”
