Kentucky judge halts Biden’s measures to protect foreign temporary farmworkers

In fiscal year 2022, approximately 370,000 foreign nationals were certified through the H-2A visa program to work on farms, including this one in Jessamine County (Kentucky Lantern photo by Jamie Lucke).

A federal judge in Kentucky has issued a ruling that blocks the Biden administration’s efforts to expand protections for farmworkers coming to the United States on H-2A visas.

U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves has issued an injunction on Monday that applies to Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia, and Alabama. The case was brought forward by Kentucky farmers and Republican attorneys general from the four states. They argued that the rules set by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) would grant foreign farmworkers the ability to unionize.

Reeves concurred with the idea, stating that the regulations modify the National Labor Relations Act in order to broaden the scope of American workers’ ability to unionize to include foreign H-2A workers. He noted that this adjustment would necessitate legislative action by Congress.

AG Coleman joins Kentucky farmers in challenging Biden protections for foreign farmworkers

“The Final Rule not so sneakily creates substantive collective bargaining rights for H-2A agricultural workers through the ‘prohibitions’ it places on their employers,” Reeves wrote. “Framing these provisions as mere expansions of anti-retaliation policies, the DOL attempts to grant H-2A workers substantive rights without Congressional authorization.”

The Department of Labor (DOL) recently implemented new regulations aimed at enhancing the legal safeguards for temporary farmworkers. These rules provide additional protections against employer retaliation, unsafe working conditions, and illegal recruitment practices.

The U.S. Department of Labor media relations office did not immediately return a voicemail left asking about the injunction.

In fiscal year 2022, the Department of Labor (DOL) certified around 370,000 workers through the H-2A visa process. The Center for Global Development, a nonprofit research organization, states that the majority of H-2A visa workers hail from Mexico.

According to a statement by Coleman, the attorney general of Kentucky, he expresses his concerns about the Biden administration’s rule, stating that it is both unlawful and unnecessary. Coleman emphasizes that this rule would have further complicated the process of getting farmers’ products onto grocery store shelves and would have ultimately led to higher prices for families, which are already quite high.

“We will continue to do what’s right to stand up for Kentucky’s farmers,” Coleman said.

Reeves rejected the plaintiffs’ request to enforce the federal rules across the country, limiting the reach of his order to only the states and specific farmers and farm labor organizations that sought an injunction.

The federal judge in Georgia had already blocked the new rules, and this decision was followed by 17 other states.

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