Washington, January 11, 2024 — Today, Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) was joined by 74 of his colleagues on a bipartisan letter to House and Senate appropriations leaders requesting an H-2A visa guestworker wage freeze in an upcoming spending package.
The “Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR),” or the required wage that farm employers must pay H-2A workers more than doubled since 2005, making agricultural labor and its products more unaffordable. With the nation’s average AEWR reaching $17.55/hr in 2024 (more than a 5% increase year over year) and other inflated input costs including fuel and fertilizer, many farms are in danger of going out of business. In Michigan, the AEWR will be a steep $18.50/hr, while our Canadian neighbors pay their agricultural workers closer to $11/hr. A temporary wage freeze is a reasonable way to alleviate this skyrocketing financial burden and give our farmers a chance to compete, stay in business, and put food on the table for millions of Americans and the world.
Huizenga and the Members of Congress wrote, “USDA data shows that hired farm labor costs account for nearly 15 percent of total cash expenses. More labor-intensive industries will be hardest-hit, including specialty crop growers, who already spend nearly 40 percent of their total cash expenses on labor alone. If we do nothing, many of our constituents will be forced shutter their businesses, despite good-faith efforts to ensure our national food security and feed families across our nation.”
Agricultural leaders across America are voicing support for the inclusion of a proposed H-2A wage freeze and detailing the negative impact an increase would have on farmers, growers, and producers.
“Members of Congress have a unique and timely opportunity to help America’s farmers and their employees keep producing safe and nutritious food. We are in the midst of a worsening labor crisis on the family farm. In the absence of true reforms to modernize an outdated system, congressional leaders should deliver this short-term relief immediately. Farmers appreciate the lawmakers who are addressing the needs of their agricultural constituents.” – Zippy Duvall, President of the American Farm Bureau Federation
“The fresh produce supply chain cannot survive, let alone thrive, under the constant barrage of regulatory burdens and cost increases imposed on our industry,” said Cathy Burns, CEO of the International Fresh Produce Association. “This bipartisan effort led by Rep. Huizenga to provide much needed meaningful relief as Congress seeks broader reforms is exactly what our industry needs right now. Absent a comprehensive solution to agricultural workforce challenges, Congress must act immediately to provide wage relief to producers before we lose more farms in America.”
“Michigan farmers are at a crossroads – we are stuck with an unrealistic and unpredictable wage rate structure that is forcing many to think twice about growing fruits and vegetables in our state,” said Michigan Farm Bureau President Carl Bednarski, a Tuscola County farmer. “Michigan Farm Bureau is incredibly grateful to Congressman Huizenga and the bipartisan group of his colleagues for their leadership on this critical issue. They understand the dire situation Michigan farmers face as a result of the Adverse Effect Wage Rate and are working to find commonsense solutions that keep farmers in business and U.S. grown fruits, vegetables and other foods available on the store shelves for all our consumers.”
“The U.S. Apple Association thanks Representative Huizenga for leading this bipartisan effort to bring stability and relief for growers throughout the nation. The cost of growing apples increased 65 percent in three years, and the main culprit is the cost of labor. Nearly all apples are grown by multi-generational family farms and they cannot sustain another year of these cost increases. We call on the Congress to enact this freeze and pass common-sense reforms to the H-2A program.” – Jim Bair, President & CEO U.S. Apple Association
The text of the letter to the House and Senate Appropriations is available below and a signed copy is available here.
Dear Chairwomen and Ranking Members,
We write with shared concerns regarding the annual adjustment to the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR). Now in 2024, the H-2A labor rates paid by agricultural employers have become more unaffordable. The new rates put further financial strain on farm operations of all sizes, and we urge you to include an H-2A wage freeze in upcoming funding legislation.
The national average AEWR has already more than doubled over the past two decades, making agricultural guest labor unaffordable for farm employers and resulting in higher consumer costs. According to the American Farm Bureau Federation, the national average AEWR will be around $17.55, which is upwards of a mean 5 percent increase over 2023. While the AEWR varies by region, nearly half of all states are projected to have an AEWR between $17 and $19 per hour in 2024. Meanwhile, producers in Canada pay closer to $11 per hour for fieldworkers, or even approximately $1.50 per hour in Mexico. This uneven playing field greatly disadvantages our domestic producers.
For farmers and ranchers who use H-2A, the skyrocketing AEWR will only compound inflated input costs like energy and fertilizer, other guest worker expenses like transportation and housing, and burdens from several impending federal regulations and fees. USDA data shows that hired farm labor costs account for nearly 15 percent of total cash expenses. More labor-intensive industries will be hardest-hit, including specialty crop growers, who already spend nearly 40 percent of their total cash expenses on labor alone. If we do nothing, many of our constituents will be forced shutter their businesses, despite good-faith efforts to ensure our national food security and feed families across our nation.
While more permanent solutions are needed to address the AEWR’s past impact and its future trajectory, we request that an upcoming government funding vehicle prohibit funds from being used to implement a wage increase or otherwise freeze the H-2A wage rates at January 2023 levels. Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Joining Congressman Huizenga on the letter are Representatives: Rick Allen (GA); Maria Salazar (FL); Lisa McClain (MI); Ralph Norman (SC); Kim Schrier (WA); Elissa Slotkin (MI); David Rouzer (NC); Austin Scott (GA); Dan Meuser (PA); John Rose (TN); Trent Kelly (MS); Mike Ezell (MS); Greg F. Murphy, M.D. (NC); John Moolenaar (MI); Andrew Clyde (GA); Russ Fulcher (ID); Byron Donalds (FL); Mike Gallagher (WI); Michael Guest (MS); Tim Walberg (MI); Cliff Bentz (OR); William Timmons (SC); Jerry Carl (AL); David Kustoff (TN); Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA); Jack Bergman (MI); Greg Pence (IN); Kat Cammack (FL); Mike Bost (IL); Michael V. Lawler (NY); Nick Langworthy (NY); Erin Houchin (IN); John Duarte (CA); Larry Bucshon, M.D. (IN); Marc Molinaro (NY); Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR); Barry Moore (AL); James R. Baird (IN); Dale W. Strong (AL); Doug LaMalfa (CA); Bruce Westerman (AR); Pete Sessions (TX); Garret Graves (LA); Gary Palmer (AL); Dan Bishop (NC); Andy Barr (KY); Darin LaHood (IL); Randy Feenstra (IA); Nancy Mace (SC); Jeff Duncan (SC); August Pfluger (TX); Glenn Grothman (WI); Daniel T. Kildee (MI); James Comer (KY); Frank D. Lucas (OK); Barry Loudermilk (GA); Jim Banks (IN); Lance Gooden (TX); Ben Cline (VA); Mary Miller (IL); Dusty Johnson (SD); Mike D. Rodgers (AL); Clay Higgins (LA); Kelly Armstrong (ND); Brett Guthrie (KY); Rudy Yakym III (IN); Joe Wilson (SC); Russell Fry (SC); Mike Kelly (PA); Claudia Tenny (NY); Ronny L. Jackson (TX); John Joyce, M.D. (PA); John James (MI); and Dan Newhouse (WA)
