H-2B visas need fixing, employers and immigration attorneys say

You’ve probably heard of H-1B visas. Those are the ones lots of tech firms use to bring in highly skilled workers from countries like India. Lesser-known but still vital to the economy are visas like the H-2A. Those are temporary, seasonal visas handed out to the people who help grow and harvest our food. Then there are H-2Bs, also temporary and seasonal, but not farm-related. They’re for the workers who staff tourist hotels, ski resorts or who do landscaping and other jobs. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta tells the Wall Street Journal that H-2B visas are broken and need fixing. He said for one thing, there’s too much of a rush to apply at the beginning of the year. Selection might need to be random, rather than first-come, first-served. And, he said, some states with a lot of seasonal employment may need higher caps. Many employers and immigration attorneys would also like to see H-2B changes.

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