Mikulski called on Secretary Johnson to conduct an analysis of unused visas and make them available to businesses
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), Vice Chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would make available between 3,000 and 6,000 unused H-2B non-immigrant visas which are integral to Maryland’s economy.
“My job is to make sure we protect our borders and protect American jobs, and also to look out for the Eastern Shore way of life,” Senator Mikulskisaid. “Every time there is a bureaucratic rule change or legal interpretation that harms their ability to operate, these businesses lose another piece of their livelihood. They need a functioning H-2B program. When the seafood industry told me the cap had been reached and they couldn’t get their workers, I started cutting through red tape. I wouldn’t take no for an answer. And I finally got DHS to do an audit where they found 3,000 to 6,000 unused visas which will now be made available. I will keep fighting to make sure Maryland businesses have a government on their side.”
On March 26, the cap for H-2B visas for 2015 was reached, causing many businesses in Maryland to be unable to secure seasonal workers. More than 40 percent of regional seafood processors have been unable to get the workers they need for the 2015 crab season. Many businesses that did have visas approved were still unable to cross workers due to the uncertainty that has plagued the H-2B program this year. At a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing in April, Senator Mikulski hand delivered a letter to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson and urged him to conduct an analysis on the number of non-immigrant H-2B visas that have gone unused, and make them available to eligible businesses.
The DHS audit found that between 3,000 and 6,000 H2B visas were unused. Businesses are expected to be notified of the application process on June 5th through the DHS website.
About the H-2B Visa Program
The H-2B visa program has aided Maryland’s seafood industry by providing seasonal labor to help pick crab meat on the Eastern Shore. It helps protect our borders and rewards foreign workers who play by the rules. At the same time, it protects American workers by requiring employers to recruit American workers first and keeps small and seasonal businesses open by guaranteeing needed labor during the peak seasons. The return rate for H-2B workers in Maryland is 80 percent each and every year, demonstrating the mutually beneficial success of the program.
Senator Mikulski’s Fight for Maryland’s Seafood Industry
Embarking on an Eastern Shore Jobs Tour in 2013, Senator Mikulski heard directly from local business owners and community leaders on the importance of the H-2B program for the Shore economy.
Over the past 20 years, industries using the H-2B visa program have brought seasonal workers into the United States at different times during the season to match peak harvest times. Seafood processors in the Chesapeake Bay, for instance, are forced to rely on the H-2B program for help picking crabs and shucking oysters despite attempts to hire domestic workers. The unique nature of the seafood industry makes these processors dependent not only on seasonal changes but on the behavior and activity of crabs, oysters and other harvested products.
5 comments:
Mikulski is clueless. those visas are NOT vital to any economy. I agree with Ann Coulter; "shut down ALL immigration programs (no more immigrants for the next 10 years). Makes perfect sense. Our economy is under a crushing right now and we'll never get out from under until this is done...
Employers save big bucks, don't have to pay social security for foreign workers. They work cheap too. I want to vote for those that want to make it easier for Americans to find jobs, as with all politicians though, they are all liars.
“My job is to make sure we protect our borders and protect American jobs.."
But she's screaming for visas to hire foreign workers? How is that protecting American jobs?
Oh, I see.. protecting the American jobs that foreigners get.
"My job is to make sure we protect our borders and protect American jobs."
Orwellian double-talk. The democrats have always been masters of deceit.
She thinks we need to import MORE third world foreigners, when there are already hundreds of thousands if not millions right here in Maryland? What about all the supposed "refugees" who have been deliberately "resettled" here, and immediately signed up for welfare? Why not offer these unskilled temp jobs to them, and get them off welfare?
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