Thread: CANADA'S LEGAL AGRICULTURAL WORKER PROGRAM

Canada has a "Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP)" which does not lead to Canadian residency or citizenship. The Canadian government also fully guarantees the wages, housing, and insurance (public and private) benefits of these workers while they are employed in Canada. "SAWP" includes employment of seasonal workers from Mexico in addition to workers primarily from former members of the British Commonwealth in the Caribbean. Each of these foreign governments themselves selects the workers who will participate in the program. "SAWP" provides for the transportation of these seasonal workers both to Canada and back to their home countries.

Canada's "Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP)" is described at www.hrsdc.gc.ca on the homepage of "Human Resources and Social Development Canada" on the official website of the Government of Canada. "SAWP" "allows the organized entry of foreign workers to work in agricultural labourer occupations.....": we never read about "Canadian crops rotting in the fields", or of Canadian farmers "not being able to compete on world markets"!

As soon as Congress's "Fourth of July break" is over, we have been warned that Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID) and the "California Powers That Be" are ready to do a "full court press" to reintroduce and quickly pass the "AG-JOBS" amnesty legislation which was also contained as part of S. 1348/S. 1639.

H.R. 371, the "Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security (AG-JOBS) Act of 2007" introduced by Rep. Howard Berman (CA-28th) on 1/12/2007 would give U.S. residential amnesty to ANY person who has "worked in agriculture" here for "at least 863 hours or l50 work days", or less than one summer's work! The companion bill in the Senate is S. 237, introduced first by Sen. Dianne Feinstein of CA. on 1/10/207.
Among the co-sponsors of S. 237 are Sens. BOXER, CRAIG, KENNEDY, SPECTER, CLINTON, HAGEL, MARTINEZ (FL), SALAZAR (CO), and Voinovich.

But "SAWP" demonstrates it is NOT NECESSARY that we give U.S. residency or citizenship to temporary workers exclusively in agriculture in order to provide U.S. farmers with a steady supply of reliable workers, and also to fully protect the rights of these foreign workers while they are employed here: Canada already does it!

In preparing ourselves to combat the upcoming push for yet another agricultural worker amnesty, I suggest we point to Canada's successful "Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP)" to prove that granting residency/citizenship is evidentally not necessary to establish and administrate a successful national temporary agricultural program! Instead, we could use Canada's "SAWP" as a successful model to revise our current H-2A Visas U.S. "Temporary Worker Program for Agriculture" for the benefit of both U.S. farmers and those whom they need to employ.

I'm ready, willing and able!!!

It is long past time that agriculture have a new wave of mechanization. This would be in the area of harvesting; replacing human labor with human operated machinery!

The first wheat combine was invented over 170 years ago. And there may be some agricultural products which will never be harvested mechanically, but these are the most delicate items that are only sold in the retail markets. Canneries and processors have a much different standard for what qualities can be tolerated. Mechanical harvesting can be designed to minimize any potential damage. I would rather have a vegetable with some damage from a machine than E coli.

It is quite posible that farm labor groups have acted to thwart the mechanization of this industry. It has been known to happen in other industries.

Instead of Hispanic Studies programs invest that money into agricultural engineeering! Our universities have plenty of capable, talented engineering faculty and students and other areas of the economy have undergone rapid change. Why should agriculture be the last? Cooperation between the departments of universities, and other research groups, would lead to faster innovation.

It is long past time that agriculture have a new wave of mechanization. This would be in the area of harvesting; replacing human labor with human operated machinery

Amen...I mean we can not pick potaoes right enough for some folks....so make a potato picking machine...sheezzh I mean we can go to the dang Moon....come on build mechanized pickers.....

There are many things we can do to stop what is happening in America. Not just in Agriculture but in all other areas. There are solutions. That is not the problem. The government does not want our problems to end. They want to keep it going. Our biggest problem in all of this is our government. If our government would just follow the Constituion of the United States starting tomarrow, we could end this mascarade. This is an invasion. An invasion led by President Bush. He holds the key. We know the solutions. It is our government elected by the people to represent the people that is the problem.

Canada's program sound much like our current farm worker program.

Agricultural Worker (H2A Visa)

The one visa category that authorizes aliens to work as seasonal farm workers in the United States is the H-2A nonimmigrant category. This category authorizes the temporary admission of foreign agricultural workers to perform work that is itself temporary in nature, provided U.S. workers are not available. There is no numerical limitation on the number of these visas that may be issued each year, but a limited form of labor certification is required.

The H-2A visa requires employers to provide a number of benefits to their temporary workers, including minimum rates of pay at least at the prevailing wage level, transportation to and from their temporary residence as well as to new worksites, housing meeting federal standards, meals and workers compensation insurance.

Employers must first conduct an affirmative search for available U.S. workers and the DOL must determine that admitting alien workers will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers. Employers are required to apply for H-2A certification at least 45 days in advance of the estimated date of need. DOL is required to act on H-2A certification requests at least 30 days in advance of the date of need, establishing a limited 15-day domestic recruitment period.

After DOL approves the labor certification petition, the employer files a petition with USCIS for named or unnamed alien beneficiaries. When USCIS approves the petition, it forwards the notice of the approval to the appropriate US consulate where the alien applies for their H-2A visa. The consulate issues the visa for a period up to 1 year in duration. Extensions of the H-2A visa may be granted for up to a total of 3 consecutive years.

Filing the I-129 Petition:

USCIS Form I-129 consists of a basic petition and different supplements that apply to the various visa categories. In order to petition for a temporary worker, the prospective employer or agent must file Form I-129, Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker, and the appropriate supplement with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) accompanied by the required payment, and initial evidence or documentation.

Once the petition is approved, the employer or agent is sent a Notice of Approval, Form I-797. Approval of a petition does not guarantee visa issuance to an applicant. Applicants must also establish that they are admissible to the U.S. under provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

Applying for the Visa:

If the prospective worker (beneficiary) is outside of the country, he must apply for a visa. After the USCIS has approved the I-129 and sent notice to the consulate in the beneficiary’s country, the beneficiary must file a visa application with the consulate. Some aliens may be visa exempt. In those cases, the I-129 approval notice is sent to the port of entry (POE) where the beneficiary intends to apply for admission. For specific procedures on Visa Application Procedures, Required Documentation and Visa Ineligibility Waiver, please visit Visa Services at the Department of State.

If the beneficiary is already in the U.S. and is changing from one nonimmigrant status to another, a visa is not required. However, a visa may be required if the beneficiary subsequently leaves the U.S. and wishes to re-enter.

Entry into the U.S.

Applicants should be aware that a visa does not guarantee entry into the United States. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has authority to deny admission at the port of entry to any applicant who is inadmissible under INA, even if the applicant has a visa. Also, the CBP, not the consular officer, determines the period for which the bearer of a temporary work visa is authorized to remain in the United States. At the port of entry, CBP officials issue Form I-94, Record of Arrival-Departure, which notes the length of stay permitted. The decision to grant or deny a request for extension of stay, however, is made solely by the USCIS.

When to file:

Petitions should be filed as soon as possible, but no more than 6 months before the proposed employment will begin or the extension of stay is required. If the petition is not submitted at least 45 days before the employment will begin, petition processing and subsequent visa issuance may not be completed before the alien's services are required or previous employment authorization ends.

http://www.us-immigration-attorney.com/h2a-visa.htm

We have a program - it's just doesn't provide the extra "cheap" labor the farmers want. We don't need the AgJOBS program because it provides a path to citizenship. The H-2A can be tweaked if necessary, but we don't need a program that will offer unlimited paths of citizenship for foreign workers. There is no cap on H-2A farm workers.

There would be many advances in farm mechanization if not for the cheap labor - cheap as in subsidized, cheap only to the farmer.

Cheap labor will keep America down and plunge us into third world status.

MW,

I brought up our H-2A Visas Program in my last paragraph, suggesting that it be revised rather than letting the "AG-JOBS" amnesty be pushed through.

My point here is that Canada's SAWP program seems to work, while our H-2A Visas Program does not. Is that because there is a real, substantive differences between the two programs? I don't know. I do know that U.S. farmers tell us that the H-2A Visas program does not work for them, while it is reported that the Canadian program--also using primarily Mexican workers--has been successful both from the point of view of the employer and of the workers themselves, evidentally over several decades.