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Recruiting
The H-2A program requires employers to attempt to recruit U.S. workers. MAS-H2A handles the required two day classified advertising in a local newspaper.
After obtaining U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) certification for the employer, MAS-H2A coordinates with qualified workers’ representatives, Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS, the successor to the INS in the Department of Homeland Security) and the Department of State, to recruit, secure visa approval and arrange transportation for capable, reliable, legal foreign labor.
Wages
The DOL establishes the applicable H-2A wage rate, called the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR). The employer pays the higher of either the AEWR or the state prevailing wage rate to both U.S. and H-2A workers. MAS-H2A will provide you with the exact wage currently required in your area upon request and in advance of your applying for the program.
The employer guarantees that workers will have the opportunity to work at least three-fourths of the total hours in the contract period. This includes both actual hours worked, as well as hours offered. This guarantee is not figured daily, weekly, or monthly but is calculated as a percentage of all the working hours in the season as specified by the employer.
Workers' Compensation Insurance
The employer must provide workers’ compensation insurance for all workers.
Housing
The employer provides free housing to all workers who are not local workers. Local workers are those who are not reasonably able to return to their place of residence each day of employment.
The housing must meet federal and state regulations for migrant labor camps, which requires a county health permit, covering well and septic systems and an inspection by the state agency designated by the federal housing standards compliance.
The housing must include kitchen facilities. Alternatively, the employer can provide workers three meals a day and be reimbursed by workers for the cost up to federally specified limits per day.
Transportation
The employer pays for both the workers’ inbound and outbound transportation: “in” from their homes abroad to the place of employment or a nearby station or terminal at the beginning of the season, and “out” to their homes abroad, or to the workers’ next job site, at the end of the season. Inbound transportation must be reimbursed after completion of fifty percent of the contract. Outbound transportation is paid at the completion of the contract.
The employer provides daily transportation to and from job sites. The employer must also provide transportation to town (grocery, bank, etc.) at least once a week.
Tools and Supplies
The employer furnishes all tools and supplies necessary to perform the work at no cost to the worker.
Click here for a summary of MAS-H2A’s comprehensive service for a single flat fee
Click here for the complete MAS-H2A information and application package
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