[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60628-60629]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-27528]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration


Labor Certification Process for the Temporary Employment of 
Aliens in Agriculture in the United States: 2018 Adverse Effect Wage 
Rates for Non-Range Occupations

AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration, Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the 
Department of Labor (Department) is issuing this notice to announce the 
2018 Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWRs) for the employment of temporary 
or seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers (H-2A workers) to perform 
agricultural labor or services other than the herding or production of 
livestock on the range.
    AEWRs are the minimum wage rates the Department has determined must 
be offered and paid by employers to H-2A workers and workers in 
corresponding employment for a particular occupation and area so that 
the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers 
will not be adversely affected. In this notice, the Department 
announces the annual update of the AEWRs.

DATE: This notice is applicable January 4, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William W. Thompson, II, 
Administrator, Office of Foreign Labor Certification, Box #12-200, 
Employment & Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, Office 
of Foreign Labor Certification, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, 
DC 20210. Telephone: 202-513-7350 (this is not a toll-free number).
    Individuals with hearing or speech impairments may access the 
telephone number above via TTY by calling the toll-free Federal 
Information Relay Service at 1-877-889-5627.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: As a condition precedent to receiving an H-
2A visa, employers must first obtain a labor certification from the 
Department of Labor. The labor certification provides that: (1) There 
are not sufficient U.S. workers who are able, willing, and qualified 
and who will be available at the time and place needed to perform the 
labor or services involved in the petition; and (2) the employment of 
the foreign worker(s) in such labor or services will not adversely 
affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the U.S. 
similarly employed. 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a), 1184(c)(1), and 
1188(a); 8 CFR 214.2(h)(5); 20 CFR 655.100.

Adverse Effect Wage Rates for 2018

    The Department's H-2A regulations at 20 CFR 655.122(l) provide that 
employers must pay their H-2A workers and workers in corresponding 
employment at least the highest of: (i) The AEWR; (ii) the prevailing 
hourly wage rate; (iii) the prevailing piece rate; (iv) the agreed-upon 
collective bargaining wage rate, if applicable; or (v) the Federal or 
State minimum wage rate, in effect at the time the work is performed.
    Except as otherwise provided in 20 CFR part 655, subpart B, the 
region-wide AEWR for all agricultural employment (except for the 
herding or production of livestock on the range, which is covered by 20 
CFR 655.200-235) for which temporary H-2A certification is being sought 
is equal to the annual weighted average hourly wage rate for field and 
livestock workers (combined) in the State or region as published 
annually by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). 20 CFR 
655.120(c) requires that the Administrator of the Office of Foreign 
Labor Certification publish the USDA field and livestock worker 
(combined) wage data as AEWRs in a Federal Register notice. 
Accordingly, the 2018 AEWRs to be paid for agricultural work performed 
by H-2A and U.S. workers on or after the applicable date of this notice 
are set forth in the table below:

                  Table--2018 Adverse Effect Wage Rates
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                          State                             2018 AEWRs
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Alabama.................................................          $10.95
Arizona.................................................           10.46
Arkansas................................................           10.73
California..............................................           13.18
Colorado................................................           10.69
Connecticut.............................................           12.83
Delaware................................................           12.05
Florida.................................................           11.29
Georgia.................................................           10.95
Hawaii..................................................           14.37
Idaho...................................................           11.63
Illinois................................................           12.93
Indiana.................................................           12.93
Iowa....................................................           13.42
Kansas..................................................           13.64
Kentucky................................................           11.19
Louisiana...............................................           10.73
Maine...................................................           12.83
Maryland................................................           12.05
Massachusetts...........................................           12.83
Michigan................................................           13.06
Minnesota...............................................           13.06
Mississippi.............................................           10.73

[[Page 60629]]

 
Missouri................................................           13.42
Montana.................................................           11.63
Nebraska................................................           13.64
Nevada..................................................           10.69
New Hampshire...........................................           12.83
New Jersey..............................................           12.05
New Mexico..............................................           10.46
New York................................................           12.83
North Carolina..........................................           11.46
North Dakota............................................           13.64
Ohio....................................................           12.93
Oklahoma................................................           11.87
Oregon..................................................           14.12
Pennsylvania............................................           12.05
Rhode Island............................................           12.83
South Carolina..........................................           10.95
South Dakota............................................           13.64
Tennessee...............................................           11.19
Texas...................................................           11.87
Utah....................................................           10.69
Vermont.................................................           12.83
Virginia................................................           11.46
Washington..............................................           14.12
West Virginia...........................................           11.19
Wisconsin...............................................           13.06
Wyoming.................................................           11.63
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    Pursuant to the H-2A regulations at 20 CFR 655.173, the Department 
will publish a separate Federal Register notice in early 2018 to 
announce (1) the allowable charges for 2018 that employers seeking H-2A 
workers may charge their workers for providing them three meals a day; 
and (2) the maximum travel subsistence reimbursement which a worker 
with receipts may claim in 2018. Also in a separate Federal Register 
notice, the Department will publish the monthly AEWR for workers 
engaged to perform herding or production of livestock on the range for 
2018.

Rosemary Lahasky,
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training Administration.
[FR Doc. 2017-27528 Filed 12-20-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4510-FP-P