ritz Roka from the UF/IFAS Southwest Research and Education Center in Immokalee, Florida will be hosting an in-service training opportunity (IST #31451) on Agricultural Guest Workers and Related Wage and Hour Rules. This IST will take place via distance on Wednesday, November 15, 2017, from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
This IST has applicability across a broad range of extension programs. Foreign agricultural guest workers through the H-2A program are becoming increasingly important for labor-intensive specialty crop producers (i.e citrus, strawberries, blueberries, and all vegetable crops). Proposed changes in the H-2A visa program (i.e. H-2C program) could expand foreign guest workers to the landscape, packing house, and dairy industries. The H-2A program, historically, has garnered negative attention from farm labor advocates and community development leaders. Finally, debate over guest worker programs has been, and probably will continue to be, at the center of comprehensive immigration reform.
The topic of labor and, specifically, of guest workers fits within Initiative #1 of the extension roadmap – Increase sustainability, profitability, and competiveness of agricultural and horticultural enterprises. To enroll and participate in this IST, please register at http://pdec.ifas.ufl.edu/inservice_training. Look for IST #31451. A week to 10 days prior to the IST, we will send out a ZOOM address and instructions on how to connect to the training.
