March 13, 2015 — The Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced it will no longer accept or process requests for H-2B visa prevailing wage determinations or labor certifications, a huge setback for almost every Gulf seafood processor from Florida to Texas.
After a challenge from Florida Rural Legal Services, a non-profit labor rights group, the Northern Florida District Court decision on Perez v. Perez (No. 3:14-cv-682) on March 4th ruled the Department of Labor does not have the authority to issue regulations in the H-2B program, including standards for calculating prevailing wages for seasonal workers. The verdict vacated the Department of Labor‘s 2008 H2B regulations on the grounds that the department lacks the authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act to issue regulations in the H-2B program.
Upon the court’s ruling, the DOL stated it can no longer accept or process requests for prevailing wage determinations or applications for labor certification in the H-2B program. The suspension of the processing of H-2B visa paperwork leaves small and seasonal seafood employers across the Gulf of Mexico without a source of legal labor as they enter the busy spring and summer seasons.
“The H-2B program has been the source of labor for Pontchartrain Blue Crab’s operation for more than 14 years. It has also been a political hot potato for the past several years now,” said Gary Bauer, the owner of the Slidell, LA based blue crab processor. “The federal program was designed to provide small businesses with a source of legal immigrant labor and alleviate the shortages of labor these small businesses face year after year.”
Read the full story from the Gulf Seafood Institute