Washington D.C. Agribusiness Lawyers

Good help is hard to find. That’s true of any industry, and agricultural businesses, with the seasonal nature of their industry, can find it more challenging the most. Sometimes those challenges mean that looking across national borders can produce the best results. Recruiting, hiring, and onboarding workers from another country carries its own set of legal and regulatory compliance issues. Our experienced Washington D.C. agribusiness lawyers will walk clients through all the details of visas, eligibility, and compliance. 

Hall Global has been helping agricultural employers manage their legal issues since 2015, and our attorneys have deep experience going as far back as 25 years. We work with both English and Spanish-speaking clients. 

Contact our office today at (202) 471-1412 or reach out here online to set up a free consultation. 

Prerequisites in Global Agricultural Hiring

Businesses based in the United States have to take some steps as a prerequisite to offering any available jobs to workers from a different country. The first requirement is that there be a lack of willing and qualified workers from the domestic U.S. labor market. An experienced Washington D.C. agribusiness attorney from our office will work with clients on the appropriate documentation to demonstrate that workers from the United States were earnestly sought, but genuinely unavailable. 

The wages offered to workers coming from abroad must then be in line with compensation packages made available to U.S. workers of similar qualifications and experience. Legal counsel should be able to document prevailing wages in the industry, thus demonstrating that hiring from abroad will not come at the expense of fair wages for all concerned. 

If these, and other basic compliance requirements are met, an agricultural employer can seek to fill their openings with workers from a different country. 

Contact Hall Global at (202) 471-1412 or fill out our online contact form today. Our team is responsive and committed to giving each and every client a deep level of personal service and reliable guidance. 

The Process for Hiring Immigrant Farm Workers

Our Washington D.C. agribusiness lawyer can start the process by applying for a domestic job order, along with temporary labor certification from the National Processing Center in Chicago. Under the umbrella of the federal Department of Labor, the Processing Center will make a determination if the perquisites have been met, and the employer will be authorized to hire. 

Once approval has been obtained, our legal counsel will file an H-2A visa petition on behalf of the employer with United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS). When USCIS signs off on the petition, and then workers must filed the same H-2A visa petition. Hall Global will be there every step of the way, helping agricultural workers get their paperwork in order. 

The H-2A visa can be applied for on a seasonal or temporary basis. The seasonal application is, as the name suggests, for work that is specific to a certain season of the year. The harvesting of produce is one example, as is taking care of plants. Temporary visas can last up to a full year. In both cases, an extension can be applied for if both employer and employee desire to continue their working relationship .

Legal Counsel You Can Rely On

Dealing with the myriad of laws and regulations surrounding the hiring of migrant workers can be a big burden to an employer. Hall Global has the experience necessary to give agricultural business owners and managers peace of mind, in knowing that their legal and compliance affairs are in good hands. 

Call our office at (202) 471-1412 or contact us online today to set up a free consultation.