Please Help #SaveH-2B - a message from the H-2B Workforce Coalition
Congress is back in session, and it is critical that your elected officials continue to hear from you about the need for immediate H-2B cap relief. As you know, the first 33,000-visa cap was reached on December 15, and the second half cap will be reached soon. Unless Congress acts promptly, many seasonal employers could be shut out of the H-2B program this year. Please ask your Senators and Representative to include H-2B cap relief in any upcoming appropriations bill and to speak personally to their party leaders about the need for cap relief.

Specifically, we hope you will take the following actions:

• Please call your Representative and Senators at their Washington, DC offices and stress the need for immediate cap relief.  You can reach your elected officials through the Capitol switchboard at 202-225-3121. Once connected to the office ask to speak to the staff person who handles H-2B issues.
• Please call or visit in person with your Senators and Representatives at their district offices. You can find the local contact information for your Senators and Representative on their websites or through www.house.gov and www.senate.gov.
• Tweet at your Representative and Senators about the need for immediate cap relief using #SaveH2B. You can find their twitter address at twitter.com/verified/lists/us-congress/members.  
• Please also call and email the USCIS ombudsman’s office and encourage the Department of Homeland Security to support H-2B cap relief.  The email address is [email protected] and the phone number is 1-855-882-8100.

We know it is an extremely frustrating and time-consuming to repeatedly make phone calls and visit your elected officials, but we will not succeed in getting cap relief signed into law unless everyone continues to take the time to weigh in with their lawmakers.

Employers racing to submit applications
On January 3, 2018, Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) issued a public service announcement regarding H-2B requests for temporary labor certification, the second half of fiscal year (FY) 2018. It is expected that the second half cap will be reached once these applications get to DHS. Please share the information below with your Representative and Senators and stress the urgent need for immediate H-2B cap relief. Urge your lawmakers to personally reach out to their party leaders and appropriations committee leaders and encourage them to include H-2B cap relief as part of any relevant legislation.

OFLC’s announcement alerted employers and other interested stakeholders about the high volume of applications received requesting temporary labor certification under the H-2B visa program. On January 1, 2018, the earliest date on which an employer seeking an employment start date of April 1 could file an H-2B application requesting temporary labor certification, OFLC received approximately 4,500 applications covering more than 81,600 worker positions. Except where a statutory exemption applies, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may only issue up to 33,000 H-2B visas for employers seeking to hire H-2B workers during the second half of FY 2018 (April 1 to September 30).

According to the agency, OFLC “takes each request for temporary labor certification seriously and administers the labor certification program in a manner that protects the wages and working conditions of both H-2B and U.S. workers who support the seasonal workforce needs of U.S. small businesses, consumers, and communities. We are working as expeditiously as possible to issue first case actions, review responses to Notices of Deficiency (NODs), and issue Notices of Acceptance where possible. First case actions are taken on a first filed basis and responses to NODs are evaluated in the order in which they are received.”

For more information on the H-2B visa program, visit https://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/temporary-workers/h-2b-temporary-non-agricultural-workers. To learn more about the H-2B visa cap and current status, visit https://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/news.cfm.