WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King led a bipartisan letter with Senators John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) urging Department of Labor (DOL) Acting Secretary Julie Su to address the extreme delays affecting the processing of labor certifications for H-2B visa applications. These delays are exacerbating severe staffing challenges for seasonal businesses that rely on the temporary worker visas to meet demand for their products or services.

“We write to express concern about the Department of Labor (DOL)’s failure to process H-2B visa labor certifications in a timely manner,” the Senators wrote, in part. “As you know, many seasonal businesses rely on H-2B visas to meet the demands of their busy season.”

“These delays mean that many employers have not been able to even begin their visa application process with the Department of Homeland Security until after the date on which they needed their workers to start. This is entirely unacceptable,” continued the Senators. “We understand that demand for these visas has increased in recent years as seasonal industries face extensive workforce shortages. However, DOL must ensure it is able to meet this increased demand, as its current processes are causing substantial hardship to employers in our states. […] We stand ready to work with you to improve these processes and ensure that DOL is able to meet the needs of our seasonal employers.”

In recent years, employers have faced extreme delays in the DOL’s processing of applications for labor certifications. Regulations require the department to issue a first action (either a Notice of Acceptance or Notice of Deficiency) on every application within seven business days of receipt. However, this year, the department has taken more than 90 days to issue a first action on an alarming number of applications. For example, many employers who first filed with the DOL between January 1 and January 3 with a requested worker start date of April 1 did not receive a first action from the DOL until as late as the third week of April, with labor certifications issued as late as the second week of May. In the letter, the Senators submitted questions on the nature of these delays and DOL’s strategy to remedy the situation.

U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Susan Collins (R-ME), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chris Coons (D-DE), James Lankford (R-OK), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), James Risch (R-ID), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), John Barrasso (R-WY) and Michael Rounds (R-SD) also signed the letter.

Senator King has long led efforts to address workforce shortages with the H-2B program. In April 2023, King sent a letter to Acting Secretary Su urging the Biden Administration to speed up the certificate process needed for employers to hire temporary foreign workers. He previously pressed the administration on this issue which led to DHS and DOL announcing that they will increase the number of H-2B visas for Fiscal Year 2023 to the maximum number, approximately 65,000 additional visas, to help small businesses hire workers.  These visas are on top of the 66,000 H-2B visas that are normally available each fiscal year.

The letter can be read in full here or below.

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Dear Acting Secretary Su:

We write to express concern about the Department of Labor (DOL)’s failure to process H-2B visa labor certifications in a timely manner.

As you know, many seasonal businesses rely on H-2B visas to meet the demands of their busy season. Before employers can apply to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for a visa, they must first receive approval for a labor certification from DOL. This approval certifies that the employer has demonstrated that they cannot find U.S. workers to fill these jobs.

Unfortunately, in recent years, employers have faced extreme delays in DOL’s processing of applications for labor certifications. Regulations require DOL to issue a first action (either a Notice of Acceptance or Notice of Deficiency) on every application within seven business days of receipt. However, this year DOL has taken more than 90 days to issue a first action on an alarming number of applications. For many employers to receive their workers on time, they must receive a first action from DOL on or before the middle of February. But this year, more than half of applications did not receive a first action until after the middle of February. For example, many employers who first filed with DOL between January 1 and January 3 with a requested worker start date of April 1 did not receive a first action from DOL until as late as the third week of April, with labor certifications issued as late as the second week of May.

These delays mean that many employers have not been able to even begin their visa application process with DHS until after the date on which they needed their workers to start. This is entirely unacceptable.

We understand that demand for these visas has increased in recent years as seasonal industries face extensive workforce shortages. However, DOL must ensure it is able to meet this increased demand, as its current processes are causing substantial hardship to employers in our states. We request answers to the following questions within 30 days:

1. What current and future actions are you taking to improve DOL’s processing of applications for H-2B labor certifications?

2. What additional resources would be necessary for DOL to meet its own regulations governing the processing of H-2B labor certifications?

3. What additional changes to the H-2B application process would enable DOL to expeditiously adjudicate all labor certification applications such that all labor certifications would be issued at least 30 days prior to employers’ requested start date?

Thank you for your timely attention to this important matter. We stand ready to work with you to improve these processes and ensure that DOL is able to meet the needs of our seasonal employers.

Sincerely,