The Department of Labor recently released data for the third quarter on the H-2A temporary farmworker program. Although third quarter numbers dropped below 2021’s first and second quarters and 2020’s third quarter, total H-2A positions through the year are still higher than a year ago.
Fiscal year (FY) 2021 third quarter H-2A visa positions were down 3.4 percent compared to last year’s third quarter. However, total positions for the year to date are up 11 percent compared to the same time last year.
Veronica Nigh, American Farm Bureau Federation senior economist, said in a Market Intel report that average growth over the last decade for the program is around 14 percent every year. “However, the global pandemic has led to some interesting patterns that are clearly on display when quarterly data is reviewed,” she added.
During the first two quarters of the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of positions held steady, unlike the usual trend of steady growth, Nigh said. “This can be attributed to general uncertainty about the overall economy and disturbances in the normal marketing channels for fresh produce.”
However, by FY 2021’s first and second quarters, there was a surge in positions due to an increase in confidence that markets would be less disturbed. “Data from the third quarter 2021 seems to indicate that some of the on-farm catch-up work has been completed,” Nigh said.
She continued that even if there is zero growth in the number of positions in the fourth quarter—which does not seem likely—the total number of H-2A positions in FY 2021 will exceed 300,000 for the first time ever.
Although there was a slight decline in the total number of certified positions in the third quarter, the Department of Labor received an increase of 23 percent in applications compared to the third quarter a year earlier. The data suggests the third quarter of 2020 was the outlier, rather than 2021. “Given where we were in the third quarter of 2020 with respect to the pandemic, it seems likely that growers requested more workers than normal as a hedge against the fear that the pandemic would lead to program disruptions later in the year,” Nigh said.
She concluded that looking long term, H-2A program data demonstrates an increasing number of operations rely on the program as an integral part of sustaining their businesses, whether there is a pandemic or not. — Anna Miller, WLJ managing editor
