Seasonal Worker Solidarity Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8954 To reform the process by which temporary nonagricultural workers’ visas are allocated, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DECEMBER 14, 2020 Mr. CASTRO of Texas (for himself, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Ms. BASS, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Ms. DELAURO, and Mr. POCAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To reform the process by which temporary nonagricultural workers’ visas are allocated, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Seasonal Worker Soli- 4 darity Act of 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. H–2B WORKERS. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Immigration and Nationality 7 Act (8 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.) is amended by inserting after 8 section 218 the following: 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8954 IH ‘‘SEC. 218A. ADMISSION OF H–2B WORKERS. 1 ‘‘(a) NATIONWIDE RECRUITMENT.— 2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor 3 shall require employers to conduct recruitment ac- 4 tivities nationwide and consider, without prejudice, 5 applications from workers and labor organizations in 6 any region, including all of the States and territories 7 of the United States, consistent with the require- 8 ments in section 101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(b) of the Immi- 9 gration and Nationality Act. The Secretary shall co- 10 ordinate with State Workforce Agencies to conduct 11 concerted recruitment in any State or metropolitan 12 statistical areas designated by the Secretary of 13 Labor as a Labor Surplus Area. 14 ‘‘(2) DISASTER RESPONSE WORKERS.— 15 ‘‘(A) DISASTER RESPONSE PRIORITY FOR 16 DISPLACED WORKERS.—Any worker authorized 17 to work in the United States who is displaced 18 as a result of a local, State, or nationally de- 19 clared disaster shall be given priority for em- 20 ployment as a temporary nonagricultural work- 21 er. 22 ‘‘(B) SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION.— 23 Employers seeking to hire temporary non- 24 agricultural workers for disaster response shall 25 submit to the Secretary of Labor a supple- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8954 IH mental worksheet detailing the health and safe- 1 ty training plan and equipment to be provided 2 to temporary nonagricultural workers to ensure 3 health and safety of such workers in impacted 4 geographical areas. 5 ‘‘(C) PLAN APPROVAL.—The Secretary of 6 Labor may not issue a labor certification unless 7 the Secretary approves the plan to adequately 8 protect workers in declared disaster areas sub- 9 mitted under this paragraph. 10 ‘‘(b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—In accordance with the 11 provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the 12 Secretary of Labor shall establish an advisory committee 13 not later than 5 months after the date of enactment of 14 the Seasonal Worker Solidarity Act of 2020, whose mem- 15 bership shall consist of representatives from the Depart- 16 ment of Labor, State Workforce Agencies, and labor orga- 17 nizations, and organizations advocating for workers in rel- 18 evant industries. The advisory committee shall meet on a 19 periodic basis and shall advise the Secretary of Labor on 20 issues related to improving recruitment of United States 21 workers and the development, testing, and implementation 22 of the recruitment platform described in subsection (c) 23 and the prevention of discrimination in the recruitment, 24 hiring, and treatment of temporary nonagricultural work- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8954 IH ers. Not later than 18 months after the date on which 1 the advisory committee hold its initial meeting, the com- 2 mittee shall submit to the Secretary of Labor and Con- 3 gress a report on issues related to improving recruitment 4 of United States workers and the development, testing, 5 and implementation of the recruitment platform and the 6 prevention of discrimination in the recruitment, hiring, 7 and treatment of temporary nonagricultural workers. 8 ‘‘(c) RECRUITMENT PLATFORM.— 9 ‘‘(1) CREATION.—Not later than 90 days after 10 the date of enactment of the Seasonal Worker Soli- 11 darity Act of 2020, the Secretary of Labor shall cre- 12 ate and make available on the Department of Labor 13 website a centralized, national electronic seasonal 14 and temporary job search and worker recruitment 15 platform (in this section referred to as the ‘recruit- 16 ment platform’) for employment opportunities for 17 which employers are seeking authorization to hire 18 H–2B workers. 19 ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The recruitment platform 20 shall allow applicants to submit applications for 21 available positions electronically to— 22 ‘‘(A) facilitate the nationwide recruitment 23 of United States workers; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8954 IH ‘‘(B) provide transparency about United 1 States employment opportunities for job seekers 2 outside of the United States. 3 ‘‘(3) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary of Labor 4 shall create a mechanism by which the public, job 5 seekers, State Workforce Agencies, labor unions, and 6 other organizations are able to receive electronic no- 7 tification within 24 hours when job orders in rel- 8 evant industries and regions are posted to the 9 website. 10 ‘‘(4) REGISTRATION.—An employer seeking to 11 recruit temporary nonagricultural workers shall reg- 12 ister on the recruitment platform and job orders on 13 the recruitment platform may only be posted by such 14 registered employers. 15 ‘‘(5) ARCHIVES.—Job orders shall remain pub- 16 licly accessible for a period of at least 5 years after 17 the original posting date. 18 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC RESPONSE.—The Secretary of Labor, 19 in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, 20 shall develop a streamlined process for labor organiza- 21 tions, and organizations advocating for workers in relevant 22 industries, to publicly challenge an employer’s claim of 23 temporary need, wage rates, job requirements posted to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8954 IH the recruitment platform, or any other employment issue 1 related to temporary nonagricultural workers. 2 ‘‘(e) EMPLOYER CERTIFICATION.—When registering 3 on the recruitment platform, an employer shall certify 4 compliance with each of the following: 5 ‘‘(1) SAFE AND FAIR WORKPLACE.— 6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The employer shall, in 7 addition to all other certifications required by 8 the Secretary of Labor meet the following re- 9 quirements: 10 ‘‘(i) LEGAL COMPLIANCE.—The em- 11 ployer shall comply with Federal law and 12 any applicable State law, or local law or 13 ordinance, and recognize any labor organi- 14 zation that provides evidence of support 15 from a majority of the workforce. 16 ‘‘(ii) WORKERS’ COMPENSATION.— 17 The employer shall provide workers’ com- 18 pensation insurance coverage in compliance 19 with State law covering injury and disease 20 arising out of and in the course of the 21 worker’s employment. If the type of em- 22 ployment for which the certification is 23 sought is not covered by or is exempt from 24 the State’s workers’ compensation law, the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8954 IH employer shall provide, at no cost to the 1 worker, insurance covering injury and dis- 2 ease arising out of and in the course of the 3 worker’s employment that shall provide 4 benefits at least equal to those provided 5 under the State workers’ compensation law 6 for other comparable employment. 7 ‘‘(iii) CONDITIONS OF EMPLOY- 8 MENT.—The employer shall offer the same 9 terms and conditions of employment 10 whether the workers hired to fill posted po- 11 sitions are recruited domestically or from 12 abroad. 13 ‘‘(B) PENALTY.—The National Labor Re- 14 lations Board shall, within 2 weeks of employer 15 registration, review relevant records to verify 16 employer compliance with this paragraph over 17 the previous 5-year period. An employer who 18 has failed to comply shall be subject to a 2-year 19 suspension from the H–2B program and the 20 use of the recruitment platform. 21 ‘‘(2) POSTING.— 22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The employer shall 23 post job orders on the recruitment platform for 24 60 days before applying for an H–2B labor cer- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8954 IH tification. Any United States applicant who ap- 1 plies for a job on the recruitment platform may 2 only be rejected for job-related reasons and 3 those found by the Secretary of Labor to have 4 been rejected on any other basis shall be hired. 5 Each employer shall retain records of all hired 6 workers and rejected applicants for 5 years. 7 ‘‘(B) LANGUAGE.—The following are re- 8 quirements with respect to job order postings 9 on the recruitment platform: 10 ‘‘(i) In the case of any employer 11 whose workforce is comprised of a signifi- 12 cant portion of workers who are not lit- 13 erate in English, such employer shall pro- 14 vide the job order posting in a language in 15 which the employees are literate. 16 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary of Labor shall 17 post all job orders prepared by employers 18 in English, Spanish, and such other lan- 19 guage as the Secretary may determine nec- 20 essary on their website. 21 ‘‘(C) FORMAT.—Each job order shall be 22 posted in a standard format, developed by the 23 Secretary of Labor, which shall include such 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8954 IH terms and conditions of employment as the Sec- 1 retary may require, including— 2 ‘‘(i) the States and locations in which 3 workers will be employed and information 4 that is searchable and shareable in an elec- 5 tronic format; 6 ‘‘(ii) wages, hours, working conditions, 7 worksite, and other benefits of employment 8 that the Secretary of Labor, in consulta- 9 tion with State Workforce Agencies, deter- 10 mines are in compliance with requirements 11 of Federal, State, and local law; and 12 ‘‘(iii) official forms submitted by pro- 13 spective H–2B employers to secure labor 14 certification and prevailing wage deter- 15 minations, including any approvals thereof 16 by the Secretary of Labor. 17 ‘‘(3) UNION APPLICANTS.—The employer shall 18 consider applicants or groups of applicants put for- 19 ward by United States labor organizations and orga- 20 nizations advocating for workers in relevant indus- 21 tries that have qualified members available for post- 22 ed job orders. The employer shall recognize the 23 union training credentials of members of United 24 States labor unions who come from abroad and such 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8954 IH members shall be eligible for H–2B visas that are 1 exempt from annual numerical limitations. 2 ‘‘(4) WORKER QUALIFICATIONS.— 3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The employer shall 4 hire workers who meet the minimum qualifica- 5 tions for a position, and shall not impose un- 6 necessary experience or educational require- 7 ments of applicants, and shall not require 8 criminal background checks, unless otherwise 9 required by law for the specific position. 10 ‘‘(B) POSITIONS REQUIRING LITTLE OR NO 11 EXPERIENCE.—In the case that the Secretary 12 of Labor determines that a position is in an Oc- 13 cupational Information Network Job Zone One 14 occupation requiring little or no prior training 15 or experience, the Secretary shall not permit an 16 employer to require prior training or experience 17 for the position. 18 ‘‘(5) WAGE RATES.—The salaries paid to H–2B 19 workers shall be set at rates that do not adversely 20 affect the local or national average wages in the oc- 21 cupations of employment or otherwise negatively im- 22 pact the working conditions and benefits of workers 23 in the United States who are similarly employed. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 8954 IH ‘‘(6) MINIMUM WORK HOURS.—The employer 1 shall guarantee that temporary nonagricultural 2 workers are paid for at least the number of hours 3 stipulated on the job order, and not less than 40 4 hours per week. 5 ‘‘(7) TRANSPORTATION AND HOUSING.—The 6 employer shall provide transportation and offer 7 housing for any temporary nonagricultural workers 8 hired to fill posted job orders as follows: 9 ‘‘(A) TRANSPORTATION.— 10 ‘‘(i) TRANSPORTATION TO AND FROM 11 PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT.—The employer 12 shall provide transportation and subsist- 13 ence for each temporary nonagricultural 14 worker to travel from the worker’s place of 15 permanent residence to the place of em- 16 ployment and back at no cost to the work- 17 er. 18 ‘‘(ii) TRANSPORTATION BETWEEN LIV- 19 ING QUARTERS AND WORKSITE.—The em- 20 ployer shall provide daily round-trip trans- 21 portation between living quarters and 22 worksite at no cost to workers, whether or 23 not the housing is employer provided. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:27 Jan 01, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8954.IH H8954 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 8954 IH ‘‘(iii) EMPLOYER-PROVIDED TRANS- 1 PORTATION.—All employer-provided trans- 2 portation shall comply with all applicable 3 Federal, State, or local laws and regula- 4 tions, and shall meet all relevant transpor- 5 tation safety standards, driver licensure, 6 and vehicle insurance requirements. 7 ‘‘(iv) EMPLOYER-REIMBURSED TRANS- 8 PORTATION.—Notwithstanding clauses (i), 9 (ii), and (iii), in lieu of providing transpor- 10 tation to a temporary nonagricultural 11 worker, an employer may reimburse a such 12 worker for transportation if such reim- 13 bursement is made not later than 5 busi- 14 ness days after receipt of written docu- 15 mentation of the worker’s transpor [Text truncated for display. 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