Announcement

The following two final rules affect the Wagner-Peyser Act Employment Service (ES), including ES services that State Workforce Agencies (SWAs) provide to migrant and seasonal farmworkers (MSFW).

  • The Department published the Farmworker Protection Rule in the Federal Register (89 FR 33898) on April 29, 2024. The Final Rule amended the regulations governing the H-2A program at 20 CFR part 655, subpart B, and 29 CFR part 501, as well as the Employment Service (ES) regulations at 20 CFR parts 651, 653, and 658. The ES amendments include changes related to the Agricultural Recruitment System and the bases and procedures for State Workforce Agencies’ discontinuation of ES services to employers. ETA described many of the changes in Training and Employment Notice No. 27-23 published on April 29, 2024. 

    On August 26, 2024, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia issued a preliminary injunction order (“Order”) in the case Kansas, et al. vs. U.S. Department of Labor, et al. No. 2:24-cv-00076-LGW-BWC (S.D. Ga., Aug. 26, 2024) (“Kansas”) prohibiting DOL from enforcing the Farmworker Protection Rule in certain states and with respect to certain entities. The preliminary injunction specifically prohibits DOL from enforcing the Farmworker Protection Rule in the states of Georgia, Kansas, South Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia, and against Miles Berry Farm and members of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association as of August 26, 2024. DOL is complying with the preliminary injunction. Accordingly, until further notice, these 17 states should follow the Employment Service regulations at 20 CFR parts 651, 653, and 658 that were in effect prior to the effective date of the Final Rule. All other states will continue to follow the ES regulations currently in effect as of June 28, 2024, including all ES amendments made in the Final Rule.  For more information on the effect of the injunction, please see TEN 27-23, Change 1. For information on the H-2A certification process, please visit https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/foreign-labor.
     
  • Wagner-Peyser Act Staffing Final Rule, 88 FR 82658, November 24, 2023. The final rule requires states to use state merit staff to provide ES services, including ES services to MSFWs. The final rule also makes changes to 20 CFR parts 651, 652, 653, 654, and 658 to strengthen ES services that states provide to MSFWs and to enhance worker protections. For more information, see Training and Employment Notice No. 10-23 and a webcast on WorkforceGPS, which provide a summary of the changes.

Employment Service and Employment-Related Law Complaint System

Information for Complainants

Individuals, employers, organizations, associations, and other entities can file complaints through American Job Centers about:

  • Employment Services provided by a State Workforce Agency or Employment Service office (one-stop center or American Job Center), or
  • Employers involving employment-related laws.

Note, the Employment Service and Employment-Related Law Complaint System does not cover complaints alleging violations under the Unemployment Insurance program, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) title I programs, or complaints by veterans alleging employer violations of the mandatory listing requirements under 38 U.S.C. 4212. However, American Job Centers can help direct you to find information about how to file complaints involving those topics.

Who can file a complaint?

Individuals (farmworkers and non-farmworkers), employers, organizations, associations, and other entities can file complaints. A complainant may also designate an individual to act as their representative.

How to file a complaint

  1. Complete Form ETA-8429: Complaint/Apparent Violation Form (Microsoft Word) (PDF)
  2. Submit it to your local American Job Center.
  3. If you have concerns about a state’s Complaint System, please contact the appropriate State Monitor Advocate.

What can I complaint about?

You can file a complaint involving any of the following:

  • Employment Services provided by a State Workforce Agency or Employment Service office (one-stop center or American Job Center). For example, a jobseeker may file a complaint about an experience seeking job information, job referral services, or any other Employment Service through an American Job Center and an employer may file a complaint about an experience seeking to recruit employees through the Employment Service.
  • Employers involving employment-related laws. For example, a job seeker or their representative may file a complaint about violations of employment-related laws governing wages; working hours; workplace crimes; wrongful termination; contract compliance; employer-provided transportation or housing; child labor; pesticides; health/safety; discrimination; trafficking in persons; sexual harassment/coercion/assault; or other employment-related issues.

American Job Centers can also help individuals to find other employment, training, and supportive services to obtain food, shelter, clothing, and other necessities.

Protections for Complainants: If you make a complaint or give information related to, or assist in, an investigation of a complaint, your identity will be kept confidential to the fullest extent possible under current law and as necessary to determine the complaint fairly. Federal laws prohibit employers from retaliating (taking negative actions) against employees who report employment-related complaints. If you experience retaliation from an employer, notify an American Job Center complaint representative.

Rights and Resources

Farmworkers have rights and access to supportive resources, regardless of immigration status. More information is available at Migrantworker.gov and Worker.gov.

Complainants may also file complaints involving employment-related laws directly with state and Federal enforcement agencies, like the United States Wage and Hour Division, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (Pesticide Safety and Health), among other agencies.

Information for State Workforce Agencies

Complaint System Posters

Each American Job Center must prominently display the ETA-approved Complaint System posters pursuant to Training Employment Notice 8-23.

Agricultural Clearance Order Forms

Employers submitting non-criteria (not connected to H-2A applications) intrastate or interstate clearance orders seeking workers to perform farmwork on a temporary, less than year-round basis through the Agricultural Recruitment System must complete Forms ETA-790 and ETA-790B, including all applicable addenda.

All states and employers, except for the 17 named states and employers identified below, must use the following forms, as provided through OMB approval number 1205-0134.  

The 17 states and employers identified in the preliminary injunction in the case of Kansas, et al. vs. U.S. Department of Labor, No. 2:24-cv-00076-LGW-BWC (S.D. Ga., Aug. 26, 2024) must use the following forms, as provided through OMB approval number 1205-0562, which do not implement the Farmworker Protection Rule. The 17 states and employers are Georgia, Kansas, South Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia, and against Miles Berry Farm and members of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association.

Employers placing criteria clearance orders (connected to H-2A applications) must complete Forms ETA-790 and ETA-790A, and all applicable addenda, which are available on OFLC’s forms page.

Employers should contact their local American Job Center for help creating agricultural clearance orders.

Additional Federal Resources

Additional resources for the National Monitor Advocate System are available on the WorkforceGPS Agricultural Connection Community.