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Another mandated increase in H-2A guest farmworker wage rates has made Congressional action on farm labor reform even more critical, according to the Agriculture Workforce Coalition.

Farm labor legislation remains on the back-burner in the Senate, but one advocate hopes to see action by March.

(UPDATED, 11:38 a.m.)Taking a step to deliver on a 2018 promise, a proposed rule from the Trump administration seeks to update the way wage rates are determined for the H-2A agricultural guest worker program.

Just shy of five years after they voted on union representation, Fresno, Calif.-based Gerawan Farming employees have had their votes officially certified by the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board.

The U.S. Department of Labor has issued a final rule that will allow agricultural employers to advertise for domestic workers online rather than in a newspaper before they turn to foreign guest workers.

The Texas International Produce Association is teaming with Equitable Food Initiative (EFI) and CIERTO Global to host two workshops on labor challenges.

LAS VEGAS — Election-year politics will present a big challenge to reform efforts for H-2A regulations, but growers must be prepared to lobby for changes in the increasingly important farm labor program.

Growers and industry leaders are praising the Trump administration’s plan to overhaul the H-2A guest worker program, changing the way wages are determined and streamlining other parts.

UPDATED: The U.S. and Guatemala are pursuing a program to boost H-2A workers from that country, in an effort to stem what the Department of Homeland Security calls irregular migration patterns.

NEW YORK — Some of the state’s fresh produce industry leaders say the proposed New York Farm Laborer Fair Labor Practices Act will hurt the agricultural industry, but they are relieved for a bit of compromise.