Ag Needs A Win: Several groups are taking Department of Labor to court over H-2A rules

Several groups are taking the Department of Labor to court over H-2A regulations. The Farm Labor Association says farmers have had a rough go the last couple of years and need a win.

“In just my one-on-one and group conversations with farmers, they’re just saying, look, I just need a break right now. Something, I need something to break my way. It seems like, particularly in the last four-ish, five years, it has just been piling on, and there’s a lot of stress in the industry. And the community just needs a break. This latest set of rules not only are unconstitutional but were also creating all kinds of new rights and requirements that don’t exist in any other type of business. And so, we were like, okay, you are now going way too far,” said Enrique Gastelum.

This lawsuit comes after a ruling in Georgia where the courts sided with 17 agriculture states. Farmers and other ag groups have called the new H-2A rules government overreach.