Speech #1090135579

Mr. President. the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act includes a subtitle known as AgJOBS. a bill that has long been championed by Senator CRAG. Senator KLENNEDY. and a broad bipartisan group of Senators. I strongly support this bill because it will help both farmers and farm workers in Vermont and around the Nation. AgJOBS contains a package of reforms that are badly needed in the seasonal agricultural worker program. called H2A visas. AgJOBS was negotiated with the full participation of agribusiness and farmworkers unions. and it reflects a fair and thoughtful balance of the needs of both farmers and workers. The version of AgJOBS contained in S. 2611 protects business by ensuring a steady flow of legal workers. It assists agricultural workers by preventing wage stagnation in a growing economy and by providing labor protections. It helps both business and labor by giving trained. and trusted foreign agricultural workers a path to permanent immigration status if they meet the requirements in the bill. such as paying fines and taxes. keeping a clean criminal record. and working the requisite number of hours. The Chambliss amendment is an attack on wages for agricultural workers who are among the lowest paid laborers in America. By unfairly favoring the growers over foreign workers. the Chambliss amendment would upset the careful balance on wages and labor protections that were negotiated with the participation of agribusiness and unions in the AgJOBS bill.