[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 147 (Monday, August 3, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48946-48948]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-15673]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Labor Certification Process for the Temporary Employment of
Foreign Workers in Agriculture in the United States: Adverse Effect
Wage Rate Updates 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 (DOL) is issuing this notice to announce updates to
the Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) for the employment of temporary or
seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers (H-2A workers) to perform
agricultural labor or services in non-range occupations. AEWRs are the
minimum wage rates that must be offered, advertised in recruitment, and
paid by employers to H-2A workers and workers in corresponding
employment to ensure that the wages and working conditions of workers
in the United States similarly employed are not adversely affected.
DATES: These rates are effective August 3, 2026. However, for entities
and states subject to the court order in Kansas et al. v. U.S. Dep't of
Labor (749 F. Supp. 3d 1363 (S.D. Ga. 2024)), these rates are effective
August 17, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Pasternak, Administrator, Office
of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC), email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Consistent with the methodology established
in the interim final rule, Adverse Effect Wage
[[Page 48947]]
Rate Methodology for the Temporary Employment of H-2A Nonimmigrants in
Non-Range Occupations in the United States (2025 AEWR IFR),\1\ this
notice updates AEWRs using wage data from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics' (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
survey as the basis for all non-range AEWR determinations. This
methodology establishes AEWRs based on two skill-based categories, with
corresponding housing adjustments that only apply when compensating H-
2A workers under temporary agricultural labor certifications,
consistent with regulatory requirements. In this notice, DOL also
announces an update to the average AEWR, which is used to calculate
adjustments to required bond amounts for H-2A Labor Contractors.
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\1\ See 90 FR 47914 (Oct. 2, 2025).
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The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of the Department of
Homeland Security will not approve an employer's petition for the
admission of H-2A nonimmigrant temporary and seasonal agricultural
workers in the U.S. unless the petitioner has received an H-2A labor
certification from DOL. 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. See 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.
DOL H-2A regulations at 20 CFR 655.120 and 655.122(l) provide that,
for non-range occupations, employers must pay their H-2A workers and
workers in corresponding employment at least the highest of various
specified wage sources, including the AEWR. Further, when the AEWR is
updated during a work contract, the employer must pay at least that
updated AEWR upon the effective date of the new AEWR, if the updated
AEWR is higher than the highest of the previous AEWRs, a prevailing
rate for the crop activity or agricultural activity and, if applicable,
a distinct work task or tasks performed in that activity and geographic
area, the agreed-upon collective bargaining wage, the Federal minimum
wage rate, or the State minimum wage rate. See 20 CFR 655.120(b)(5).
Similarly, when the AEWR is updated during a work contract and is lower
than the wage rate that is guaranteed on the job order, the employer
must continue to pay at least the wage rate guaranteed on the job
order. See 20 CFR 655.120(b)(6).
Pursuant to the 2025 AEWR IFR, AEWRs for non-range agricultural
occupations are determined using wage data from the BLS OEWS survey.
This methodology determines the AEWRs for H-2A job opportunities using
the annual average hourly gross wage for each U.S. state or territory,
differentiated by two skill or qualification levels: Skill Level I
(Entry-Level) and Skill Level II (Experience-Level). A Skill Level I
AEWR applies to job opportunities with minimum qualifications
consistent with entry-level positions, in which workers are not
required to possess formal education or specialized training
credentials. A Skill Level II AEWR applies to job opportunities
requiring qualifications commensurate with experienced or otherwise
fully proficient workers, who through education, training, or
experience, have demonstrated the skills or knowledge necessary to
perform the duties of the H-2A job opportunity. AEWRs for most job
opportunities will continue to be classified within the five Standard
Occupational Classification (SOC) codes comprising the field and
livestock workers (combined) category.\2\
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\2\ The OEWS reports the annual average hourly gross wage for
each U.S. state or territory aggregated across the following SOCs
contained within the field and livestock (combined) category: 45-
2041 Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products; 45-2091
Agricultural Equipment Operators; 45-2092 Farmworkers and Laborers,
Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse; 45-2093 Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and
Aquacultural Animals; and 53-7064 Packers and Packagers, Hand.
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Current regulation requires the OFLC Administrator to publish a
Federal Register notice at least once in each calendar year to
establish each set of AEWRs and corresponding housing compensation
adjustments. See 20 CFR 655.120(b)(4).
AEWR Determinations Using OEWS Data
In accordance with 20 CFR 655.120(b)(1)(i), AEWRs for occupations
within the field and livestock workers (combined) category are
calculated using statewide \3\ annual average hourly wages reported by
the OEWS survey for the relevant SOC codes. Where a statewide annual
average hourly gross wage in the U.S. state or territory at either
skill level is not reported by the OEWS, the AEWR for the field and
livestock workers (combined) category shall be the national annual
average hourly gross wage at that skill level, as reported by the OEWS
survey.
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\3\ See 20 CFR 655.120(b)(1)(iv) (``For purposes of paragraphs
(b)(1)(i) and (ii) of this section, the term State and statewide
include the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico,
and the U.S. Virgin Islands.'')
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Similarly, and consistent with 20 CFR 655.120(b)(1)(ii), AEWRs for
all other occupations are determined using the statewide annual average
hourly gross wage for the SOC code for the State, or equivalent
district or territory, as reported by the OEWS survey. Where a
statewide annual average hourly gross wage in the State at either skill
level is not reported by the OEWS survey, the AEWR for each SOC shall
be the national annual average hourly gross wage for that occupation at
that skill level, as reported by the OEWS survey.
Based on the most recently published OEWS survey,\4\ the OFLC
Administrator is publishing the statewide hourly AEWRs applicable to
all non-range H-2A job opportunities. Additionally, DOL is updating and
disclosing the statewide downward compensation adjustments to the
applicable AEWRs that can only be applied to H-2A workers who are
provided with housing at no cost pursuant to 20 CFR 655.120(b)(3). All
hourly AEWRs determined under 20 CFR 655.120(b) are available for each
SOC code and geographic area at the following URL: https://flag.dol.gov/wage-data/adverse-effect-wage-rates. At the URL, DOL
provides a searchable spreadsheet and other resources that enable
interested parties to search by U.S. state or territory and SOC code
for the OEWS-based AEWR applicable to an H-2A job opportunity.
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\4\ See Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and
Wage Statistics (OEWS) data, OEWS Databases (May 15, 2026),
available at https://www.bls.gov/oes/data.htm. Note that the OEWS
data released represent May 2025 estimates.
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Average AEWR Determination
Section20 CFR 655.103(b) defines ``average AEWR'' as ``the simple
average of the [AEWR] applicable to the SOC45-2092 . . . and published
by the OFLC Administrator in accordance with Sec. 655.120.''
Accordingly, the calculation of the average AEWR requires the simple
average of the AEWRs applicable to SOC45-2092 across all U.S. states
and territories, as reported by the OEWS survey, and published by the
OFLC Administrator. Because the regulatory text specifies that the
simple average must be taken across the AEWRs ``applicable to the
SOC45-2092,'' the calculation encompasses the sum of the complete set
of applicable AEWRs across both skill levels without any standardized
adjustments referenced above divided by the number of AEWRs applicable
to SOC 45-2092 included in the published searchable spreadsheet at the
aforementioned URL. Therefore, the current average AEWR determined
[[Page 48948]]
under 20 CFR 655.103(b), which is used to calculate the bond amounts
required under 20 CFR 655.132(c)(2)(ii), is $15.96 and is also
available at the following URL: https://flag.dol.gov/wage-data/adverse-effect-wage-rates.
(Authority: 20 CFR 655.120(b)(4); 20 CFR 655.103(b))
Marek Laco,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training, Labor.
[FR Doc. 2026-15673 Filed 7-31-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-FP-P