Foreign Labor Certification Program

Purpose
This program permits U.S. employers to hire foreign workers on a temporary or permanent basis to fill jobs essential to the U.S. economy. It is designed to ensure that the admission of foreign workers into the U.S. will not adversely affect the job opportunities, wages, and working conditions of U.S. workers.

Customers and Services 
Primary customers are Minnesota agricultural employers interested in hiring temporary foreign workers under the H-2A agricultural occupation visa program. The program permits the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to issue temporary labor certifications when there are insufficient qualified U.S. workers available and willing to perform the agricultural work at wages that meet or exceed the prevailing wage paid for that occupation in the area of intended employment. DEED, acting as a DOL agent, conducts inspections of employer-provided, no-cost worker housing; enters employer job orders to recruit workers and refers qualified applicants; and conducts prevailing wage and prevailing practice surveys for various agricultural occupations.

Measures - Reporting period is state fiscal year (SFY), July 1 - June 30

*As of 7/01/09, DEED ceased processing H-2B applications for temporary, non-agricultural occupations, and as of 1/01/10, stopped accepting prevailing wage requests due to changes in the labor certification process and rules instituted by the U.S. DOL.

More DEED measures: Uniform Program Accountability Measures

Funding Source and Appropriation/Allocation (in thousands)

Statutory Authority
-- U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act; U.S. Code, Title 8, Chap. 12

Contact Information 
Frances Regan, Program Manager
Phone: 651.259.7508; Fax: 651.297.7722; TTY: 651.296.3900

This information current as of December 2011.