[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 246 (Wednesday, December 26, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66306-66307]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-28030]


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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: 2019 Adverse Effect Wage 
Rates for Non-Range Occupations

AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration (ETA), 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 
2019 Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) 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 workers in the 
United States (U.S.) will not be adversely affected. In this notice, 
the Department announces the annual update of the AEWRs.

DATES: These rates are applicable January 9, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas M. Dowd, Deputy Assistant 
Secretary, Employment and Training Administration, Department of Labor, 
Box #12-200, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20210, Telephone: 
(202) 693-2772 (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 (TTY/TDD).

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 2019

    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; or (v) the Federal or State minimum 
wage rate in effect at the time the work is performed.
    The AEWR for all agricultural employment (except for the herding or 
production of livestock on the range, which is covered by 20 CFR 
655.200-655.235) 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 2019 AEWRs to be paid for agricultural work performed 
by H-2A and U.S. workers on or after the effective date of this notice 
are set forth in the table below:

                  Table--2019 Adverse Effect Wage Rates
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                          State                             2019 AEWRs
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Alabama.................................................          $11.13
Arizona.................................................           12.00
Arkansas................................................           11.33
California..............................................           13.92
Colorado................................................           13.13
Connecticut.............................................           13.25
Delaware................................................           13.15
Florida.................................................           11.24
Georgia.................................................           11.13
Hawaii..................................................           14.73
Idaho...................................................           13.48
Illinois................................................           13.26
Indiana.................................................           13.26
Iowa....................................................           13.34
Kansas..................................................           14.38
Kentucky................................................           11.63
Louisiana...............................................           11.33
Maine...................................................           13.25
Maryland................................................           13.15
Massachusetts...........................................           13.25
Michigan................................................           13.54
Minnesota...............................................           13.54
Mississippi.............................................           11.33
Missouri................................................           13.34
Montana.................................................           13.48
Nebraska................................................           14.38
Nevada..................................................           13.13
New Hampshire...........................................           13.25
New Jersey..............................................           13.15
New Mexico..............................................           12.00
New York................................................           13.25
North Carolina..........................................           12.25
North Dakota............................................           14.38

[[Page 66307]]

 
Ohio....................................................           13.26
Oklahoma................................................           12.23
Oregon..................................................           15.03
Pennsylvania............................................           13.15
Rhode Island............................................           13.25
South Carolina..........................................           11.13
South Dakota............................................           14.38
Tennessee...............................................           11.63
Texas...................................................           12.23
Utah....................................................           13.13
Vermont.................................................           13.25
Virginia................................................           12.25
Washington..............................................           15.03
West Virginia...........................................           11.63
Wisconsin...............................................           13.54
Wyoming.................................................           13.48
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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 2019 to 
announce: (1) The allowable charges for 2019 that employers seeking H-
2A workers may charge their workers for providing them three meals a 
day; and (2) the maximum travel subsistence reimbursement that a worker 
with receipts may claim in 2019. 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 
2019.

Molly E. Conway,
Acting Assistant Secretary for the Employment and Training 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2018-28030 Filed 12-20-18; 11:15 am]
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