As DHS/DOL temporary rule increasing visas takes effect today, Pappas urges additional federal efforts to meet New Hampshire’s small business hiring needs
On the day that a new temporary rule from the Departments of Labor and Homeland Security goes into effect, increasing the number of available H-2B temporary nonagricultural guest worker visas, Congressman Pappas (NH-01) is thanking the Biden administration for this action while calling for additional federal action to meet the workforce needs of small businesses across New Hampshire.
Recently, the Departments of Labor and Homeland Security published a joint temporary final rule making available an additional 22,000 H-2B temporary nonagricultural guest worker visas for fiscal year 2021. This follows repeated calls from Congressman Pappas on behalf of small businesses throughout New Hampshire who depend on H-2B visas to meet their workforce needs and have shared their concerns that the program is not working for them.
"I appreciate the Biden Administration's decision to make available an additional 22,000 H-2B visas," said Congressman Pappas. "But this step is inadequate by itself and fails to meet the needs of our seasonal small businesses who cannot fully gear up for the summer without more visas and improvements to the efficiency of the program. I am calling on the Biden Administration to streamline and simplify the application process to reduce further delays in hiring, to examine the lottery system used to allocate the visas, and to reinstate the returning worker exemption. Without these common-sense steps many small businesses will struggle at a time when we must have their backs. I remain committed to fighting for New Hampshire's small business community, and I urge the Administration to ensure that the H-2B program meets their needs."
Earlier this month, Rep. Pappas sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas asking him to consider additional factors in allocating H-2B visas, including a state's unemployment rate. Pappas noted that because New Hampshire has a low unemployment rate it has a higher need for temporary workers through the H-2B program to meet workforce needs. Additionally, Pappas shared the concerns he has heard from local businesses about the lottery system that will be used for distribution which prioritizes states with higher populations and higher unemployment rates. Because of these factors, two-thirds of businesses in New Hampshire would not recognize any benefit from this latest addition.
Background:
Since taking office, Congressman Pappas has advocated for New Hampshire's seasonal businesses and for reforming the temporary worker visa process. He has met with small businesses to hear directly from them about the need to make additional H-2B visas available. He also spoke several times with Trump administration officials urging them to release additional H-2B visas to address workforce shortages in New Hampshire and across the country in seasonal industries.
In December, Pappas voted to pass the bipartisan omnibus appropriations package which authorized additional H-2B visas for Fiscal Year 2021 for temporary nonagricultural labor to address the urgent needs of seasonal employers.
Original source can be found here.
