The debate on using overseas workers to fill lower-wage seasonal jobs that Americans tend to spurn is nothing new. But, fraught immigration politics and a tight labor market have given the issue a new urgency as the Republican and Democratic parties fight to control Congress in an election year.
Opponents of immigration and unions claim that the program suppresses wages and denies Americans jobs, while advocacy groups claim that immigrant workers are frequently exploited. Employers argue that the reluctance to admit to the reality of a shortage of workers leaves many businesses no alternative other than to surreptitiously hire undocumented immigrants on low pay. But, the conflicts have intensified further in 2018, with record levels of low unemployment leaving amusement parks, hotels, landscapes, and restaurants, among other businesses, desperate for low-skilled seasonal workers.
Changes to the rules that govern the US visa program have taken many employers by surprise, with Maine tourist havens and the Maryland crab industry left in jeopardy. The program has also fed the increasingly bitter immigration debate.
The annual number of H-2B visas is capped at 66,000 per annum, but while workers from previous years were once excluded from that quota, the practice was halted last year, following complaints. In 2018, the US government was swamped with applications, resulting in a lottery system replacing the traditional system of ‘first come, first served’. The Department of Homeland Security added a further 15,000 visas last month, following frantic requests.