Speech #1090134024

The prevailing wage. determined by surveys conducted by States. insured that available U.S. workers would not be discouraged from applying for the job because it paid lower than usual wages. It also guaranteed that all workers. both foreign and domestic. would be paid a wage that was competitive in the local area. thus avoiding depressing wages for that occupation or making the use of foreign workers more attractive than hiring U.S. workers. At the present time. prevailing wages are required for H1B. H2B. and permanent workrelated visas. However. H2A. the agricultural version of temporary. nonimmigrant work visas. is required to pay a different wage ratethe adverse effect wage rate. Unlike prevailing wages. which are established for a local area for specific jobs. and determined by the level of experience. skill. and education they require. the adverse effect wage rate is an average of all wages including incentive pay. bonuses. and seniority for all farm jobs in a multiState region. So an H2A employer in Indiana must guarantee an H2A worker with no experience who is working on a dairy farm the same minimum wage as a farm employee in Ohio with 5 years of experience operating a combine to harvest soybeans. Likewise. an inexperienced employee who is harvesting lettuce in Arizona must be guaranteed the same minimum wage as an experienced greenhouse worker in New Mexico. It just doesnt make sense. Prevailing wages are determined by the U.S. Department of Labor through its State partners. using a methodology designed to capture a fair wage that reflects the local standards specific to a particular occupation. This is currently done for H1B and H2B visas. I might add that the new H2C program that has been approved as part of this particular underlying bill and was accepted as the prevailing wage for that work was accepted by unanimous consent yesterday. Conversely. the adverse effect wage rate is determined by a survey conducted by the U.S.