Labor Day offers time to appreciate and ponder
Most farmers and ranchers tend to shrug off Labor Day because they are planting wheat, picking corn, harvesting soybeans and feeding and watering livestock.
However, as many in agriculture know, labor is a critical need not only for farms and ranches but for agribusiness, too.
Unless an operation has a large family, it will likely need additional labor, and agriculture has attractive job opportunities for both skilled and unskilled workers. Over the years, many farm and ranch employers have evolved to include regular performance reviews, 401(k)s, competitive health insurance plans and vacation schedules. Successful employers also know it is important to provide flexibility for employees and their families.
The unemployment rate, according to the federal government, is about 4.2% nationwide. In the High Plains region, except for a couple of states, the jobless rate is 4.2% or lower.
Farm labor can be complex because managers may have to sift through myriad regulations involving multiple government agencies, particularly if they are using H-2A workers. The H-2A program allows U.S. employers or agents who meet specific regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals to the U.S. to fill temporary agricultural jobs.
John Walt Boatright, director of government affairs for the American Farm Bureau Federation, noted in July that, despite barriers to using the H-2A temporary agricultural visa program, farmers are increasingly turning to the program to meet their labor needs. In fiscal year 2026, H-2A use is already up 17% in volume, with fewer than 0.07% of those jobs receiving a domestic applicant.
Boatright applauded the work of U.S. Rep. GT Thompson, R-PA, who is chairman of the House Agriculture Chairman, led a bipartisan group of lawmakers to help craft a solution after receiving much feedback from farmers and ranchers.
The product of that work serves as the foundation for his Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act.
The proposal centers on three key H-2A reforms: controlling costs, improving access and modernizing and streamlining the program.
The costs of using the program are significant. Employers are required by law to pay housing, transportation and mandatory wages for H-2A employees, as well as to cover administrative costs of the program. The Adverse Effect Wage Rate–the minimum hourly wage H-2A employees must be paid–has been the major and unpredictable cost driver for farmers. In the past decade alone, the AEWR has easily outpaced private-sector wage growth, with the AEWR rising by 60% compared with a 49% increase in private-sector wage growth, Boatright wrote. However, unlike most in the private sector, farmers cannot pay for increased labor costs by raising their prices; they are price takers, not price makers.
Boatright said reforms should include:
A visa program that is open to all segments of agriculture and flexible enough to provide for the differing needs of farmers and ranchers, including seasonal and year-round employers;
A wage methodology that would cap year-over-year increases and would be based on sound data;
A visa program that is simplified and cost-competitive.
Thompson’s committee, in its executive summary, recommended moving the authority to define agricultural labor and services from the secretary of labor to the secretary of agriculture. That recommendation makes sense.
The labor challenges farmers and ranchers have faced are not new, but in our opinion, a solution needs to be delivered to them and could bring renewed energy to Labor Day.
Dave Bergmeier can be reached at 620-227-1822 or [email protected].
