OFLC Hawaii Wildfire Disaster Guidance
Announcements
June 27, 2024. Office of Foreign Labor Certification Announces that FLCDataCenter.com Will Be Discontinued Effective July 1, 2024
FLCDataCenter.com will be discontinued effective July 1, 2024. On July 1, 2024, prevailing wage data from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics Survey will be available through the OFLC Wage Search tool, which can be accessed via the FLAG website (https://flag.dol.gov/wage-data/wage-search).
June 26, 2024. Office of Foreign Labor Certification Announces Publication of an Updated Appendix A to the Preamble–Education and Training Categories by O*NET–SOC Occupations for July 2024 through June 2025 Wage Year
On November 15, 2021, the Employment and Training Administration issued a Federal Register notice (FRN) informing the public that the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) was updating Appendix A to the Preamble–Education and Training Categories by Occupational Information Network (O*NET)–Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Occupations. Appendix A is a list of professional occupations that serves as a guide for employers to distinguish between professional and non-professional occupations in order to comply with the professional recruitment requirements of the PERM program. The FRN stated that OFLC intends to review BLS’s occupational and education data each year to publish a new list of occupations on its website, even when BLS data remain the same from the previous year.
OFLC is releasing this year’s Appendix A, which implements the new list of professional occupations for the July 2024 through June 2025 wage year and will be effective starting July 1, 2024.
June 25, 2024. Office of Foreign Labor Certification Reminds Employers and Stakeholders of the H-2B Application Filing Timelines for October 1, 2024, Start Dates of Work
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) reminds employers and other interested stakeholders that the three-day filing window to submit an H-2B Application for Temporary Employment Certification (Form ETA-9142B and appendices) requesting a work start date of October 1, 2024, will open on July 3, 2024, at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time, and close on July 5, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. This three-day period is the earliest an employer may file an application for an October 1, 2024, work start date, which is the first day of the semi-annual visa allotment for the first half of Fiscal Year 2025. Employers seeking start dates of October 2, 2024, or later must comply with the timeliness requirements at 20 CFR 655.15(b).
In accordance with regulatory requirements and OFLC’s standard operating procedures, H-2B applications requesting October 1, 2024, work start dates will be denied if they are filed before July 3, 2024, at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time.
After the three-day filing window has closed, OFLC will randomly order applications for assignment to analysts for review and processing all H-2B applications requesting a work start date of October 1, 2024, that are filed during the three-day filing window (July 3-5, 2024) using the randomization procedures published in the Federal Register on March 4, 2019.
Helpful Filing Tips
- Only one H-2B Application for Temporary Employment Certification per job opportunity should be filed to prevent duplicate filings and delayed processing. 20 CFR 655.15(f).
- If “yes” is selected for “Board, Lodging, or Other Facilities” under section F.d.5, Form ETA-9142B, and deductions other than those required by law may be made from the worker’s pay, include details about the deductions and amounts to cover the reasonable cost of board, lodging, and other facilities in section F.d.6.
- The employer must submit with its H-2B Application for Temporary Employment Certification a copy of the job order being submitted concurrently to the SWA serving the area of intended employment, as set forth in 20 CFR 655.16. The job order submitted must be a copy of the actual job order or a completed job order form used by the SWA for posting in its job clearance systems (as defined by 20 CFR 655.5).
- Original signatures and dates on Appendix B must be current.
June 24, 2024. Employment and Training Administration Publishes Federal Register Notice (FRN) Updating the H-2A Hourly Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) for Non-Range Occupations Using the Occupational Employment and Statistics Survey (OEWS)
The Employment and Training Administration has published an FRN updating the AEWRs under the H-2A temporary agricultural employment program that apply to a limited set of H-2A job opportunities for which the AEWR is determined using the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS survey. These changes will go into effect, as stated in the FRN, on July 8, 2024.
June 14, 2024. Office of Foreign Labor Certification Announces Solicitation of Input for the Annual Determination of Labor Supply States to Enhance U.S. Worker Recruitment
The 2022 H-2A Final Rule, which became effective on November 14, 2022, implemented a new process for the OFLC Administrator’s determination of labor supply states (LSS). LSS are additional states in which an employer’s job order will be circulated and, if appropriate, where additional positive recruitment may be required of the employer. Consistent with 20 CFR 655.154, the OFLC Administrator will solicit public input about LSS and related recruitment mechanisms to make a determination that identifies whether there are areas of traditional or expected labor supply for each state with respect to the availability of qualified workers and the appropriate and effective means of recruiting those workers. The solicitation period will be open for a period of 60 days. The determination can include specific geographic area(s) of the United States in which a significant number of qualified workers have been identified and who, if recruited through additional positive employer recruitment activities, would be willing to make themselves available for work in the state.
The OFLC Administrator will consider general information about labor flow trends (e.g., information contained in the agricultural recruitment clearance system) to inform a determination regarding expanded interstate circulation of H-2A job orders. To make a determination regarding labor supply and the positive recruitment needed to reach qualified workers within a State, the OFLC Administrator requests information from the public regarding the availability of qualified workers, and the appropriate, effective methods of contacting those workers. Information that could be helpful to the OFLC Administrator’s determination include, but are not limited to, the following:
- The type of qualified workers available (e.g., tomato harvest workers);
- The State and geographic area(s) within the State where the workers may be located (e.g., city, county, regional non-metropolitan area);
- The methods for apprising the workers of a job opportunity (e.g., local newspaper or periodical, posting with a particular community organization engaged with those workers); and/or
- Most current information for the person(s) or entity (e.g., worker union, community-based organization) to be contacted for assistance in circulating the job opportunity to those workers.
All previously determined LSS requirements will remain in full effect, unless the OFLC Administrator receives information indicating that a previous LSS is no longer a source for qualified workers.
DEADLINE FOR PUBLIC INPUT: OFLC is seeking information, and particularly welcomes specific information, on or before Tuesday, August 13, 2024.
HOW TO SUBMIT INFORMATION: OFLC will only consider electronic submissions to the email box, H2ALaborSupply@dol.gov, for making determinations as to the labor supply States. Any submissions sent through mail or other correspondence will not be accepted.
The OFLC Administrator will publish on the OFLC website its determinations after careful review of all information received.
In addition, the Department will continue to satisfy its multi-State recruitment statutory requirement, and the broader statutory obligation regarding U.S. worker availability, through a combination of other recruitment activities, including:
- Posting job opportunities on DOL’s electronic job registry, SeasonalJobs.dol.gov, which broadcasts the job offer continuously to prospective applicants during the recruitment period;
- Interstate clearance of the job order through the SWAs, which engages the Wagner-Peyser recruitment system in labor supply States; and
- Employer contact with former U.S. workers, wherever they are located.
June 10, 2024. OFLC Provides Materials on the 2024 Farmworker Protection Final Rule Webinar
On June 6, 2024, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC), Wage and Hour Division, and the Office of Workforce Investment conducted a webinar to provide on the changes to the H-2A and Wagner-Peyser Employment Service programs made by the 2024 Farmworker Protection Final Rule. The presentation materials are now available at the hyperlinks below and located on our website under the “Webinars” tab at the bottom of the H-2A Program page located here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/foreign-labor/programs/h-2a
May 21, 2024. The Department of Labor Announces Webinar for the 2024 Farmworker Protection Final Rule to be Held on Thursday, June 6, 2024
On Thursday, June 6, 2024, the Department of Labor will host a public webinar to educate employers, agricultural associations, farm labor contractors, farmworkers, advocates, and other interested members of the public on the changes to the H-2A and Wagner-Peyser Employment Service programs made by the 2024 Farmworker Protection Final Rule. Participants of this webinar will learn from the Office of Foreign Labor Certification, the Office of Workforce Investment, and the Wage and Hour Division about the key aspects of this rule. The Final Rule will become effective June 28, 2024, and OFLC will begin accepting applications subject to the provisions of this rule on August 29, 2024.
The meeting registration details are below. *Please note: There is an attendee maximum of 3,000 and a recording of the presentation in English and Spanish will be placed on our website at a later date.
The Department of Labor is committed to equitable access and inclusion of all people. As part of this commitment, we will ensure that people with disabilities and those who need foreign language interpretation are provided accommodations and effective communications. If you require an accommodation or language interpretation to attend this event, please email stakeholder.meeting@dol.gov by May 30, 2024.
Meeting Details: Thursday, June 6, 2024
1:00 PM to 2:30 PM | (UTC-04:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada) | 1 hr 30 mins
Attendee registration link: https://usdolevents.webex.com/weblink/register/r44a2f5821d38e0110dc82d0bdf90e437
May 15, 2024. OFLC Releases Public Disclosure Data and Selected Program Statistics for Q2 of Fiscal Year 2024.
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) has released a comprehensive set of public disclosure data (through the second quarter of fiscal year 2024) drawn from employer applications requesting prevailing wage determinations and labor certifications for the PERM, LCA (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3), H-2A, H-2B, CW-1, and Prevailing Wage programs.
The public disclosure files include all final determinations OFLC issued for these programs during the October 1, 2023 through March 31, 2024 reporting period of fiscal year 2024.
OFLC has also released selected program statistics for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024 for the PERM, LCA (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3), H-2A, H-2B, CW-1, and Prevailing Wage programs.
- View the public disclosure files and corresponding record layouts containing detailed descriptions of each available data element.
- View the selected program statistics containing key program information.
May 15, 2024. OFLC Releases the H-2B Foreign Labor Recruiter List for Q2 of Fiscal Year 2024
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) has published an updated list of the names of foreign labor recruiters for the H-2B program as required by 20 CFR 655.9(c).
The list contains the name and location of persons or entities identified on Appendix C of the Form ETA-9142B that were hired by, or working for, the recruiter that employers have indicated they engaged, or planned to engage, in the recruitment of prospective H-2B workers to perform the work described on their H-2B application.
The H-2B Foreign Labor Recruiter List includes only those names and locations associated with H-2B applications that were processed or issued a final decision during the October 1, 2023 through March 31, 2024.
By publishing the foreign labor recruiter list, OFLC is ensuring greater transparency for the H-2B worker recruitment process and facilitating information sharing between the U.S. Department of Labor and other agencies.
May 6, 2024. OFLC Announces 60-Day Public Comment Period on Proposed Three-Year Extension of Labor Condition Application and WH-4 Forms for the H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 Temporary Programs
The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register announcing its intent to extend the Office of Foreign Labor Certification’s Labor Condition Application (LCA) forms and the Wage and Hour Division’s WH-4 complaint form for three years. The Department of Labor (Department) proposes extensions to the LCA and WH-4 complaint forms, without changes. The information collection request includes the LCA Forms ETA-9035, ETA-9035E (electronic), ETA-9035 & 9035E Appendix A, ETA-9035CP Instructions, and the WH-4 complaint form. The Federal Register notice informs the public of the Department’s three-year extension request for the forms and invites comments from the public for 60 days.
Written comments must be submitted in accordance with the Federal Register notice instructions. The deadline to submit comments is Friday, July 5, 2024.
April 9, 2024. OFLC Provides CW-1 Webinar Materials and Information to Stakeholders
On March 26, 2024, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) conducted a webinar to provide an overview on common issues the National Processing Center has identified with CW-1 Applications for Temporary Employment Certification and offered filing tips that can minimize the common application errors. The presentation materials are now available at the hyperlinks below and located on our website under the “Webinars” tab at the bottom of the CW-1 Program page located here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/foreign-labor/programs/cw-1.
Email Updates