USDA to invest up to $65M in a pilot to bolster food supply, improve working conditions for farmworkers

The USDA and other federal agencies will develop a pilot program utilizing up to $65 million in American Rescue Plan funding to provide support for agricultural employers, according to a news release.

The pilot program is related to the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection at the Summit of the Americas, recently signed by President Joe Biden.

The declaration, according to the release, seeks to mobilize the entire region around “strong actions to bring the historic migration crisis under control." It's organized around the pillars of stabilization, legal pathways and protections, and humane migration management, according to the release.

The funding for the USDA pilot program will help employers implement health and safety standards to promote a safe, healthy work environment for both U.S. workers and workers hired from Northern Central American countries under the seasonal H-2A visa program, the release said.

The program will seek to improve the resiliency of the food and agricultural supply chain and advance several major Biden administration priorities, the release said, including:

• Driving U.S. economic recovery and safeguarding domestic food security by addressing current labor shortages in agriculture. The pilot program will help address this shortage by expanding the potential pool of workers.
• Reducing irregular migration through the expansion of legal pathways. The Biden-Kamala Harris Administration has taken numerous steps to address the elevated levels of irregular migration from Northern Central America. The H-2A visa program offers a lawful pathway for individuals from these countries to come to the United States to engage in temporary or seasonal agricultural work. An effective H-2A visa program is critical to the resiliency of the food and agricultural supply chain. This pilot program will aim to address challenges that both workers and employers face in utilizing the program.
• Improving working conditions for farmworkers; through this pilot program, USDA will support efforts to improve working conditions for both U.S. and. H-2A workers and ensure that H-2A workers are not subjected to unfair recruitment practices.

USDA will provide opportunities for stakeholder engagement as the program is developed, according to the release. The department will also partner with the United Farm Workers of America through a technical assistance cooperative agreement to inform USDA of the challenges faced by agricultural workers and to inform the development of the pilot program.

UFW will work with relevant stakeholders, including farmers, farmworkers, farmworker advocates and unions, to ensure that the agency benefits from a wide range of views. After the consultation and program development phase, USDA intends to launch a competitive pilot program ahead of the growing season in early 2023, the release said.