On November 26, a federal district court in Mississippi found the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) lacked the authority to issue certain parts of regulations of the H-2A visa program it issued in April 2024. USApple is a plaintiff in the case along with several other agricultural organizations. The provisions that have been overturned were the most problematic parts of that rule including requiring agricultural employers to allow H-2A workers to unionize. The judge issued a stay of the regulations effective date precluding the DOL from enforcing the regulations nationwide.
This ruling follows an August decision in Georgia which enjoined the rule in its entirety in the 17 states that brought that suit. In response the DOL decided to continue to enforce the regulations in the other 33 states not covered by that court’s injunction. USApple submitted formal comments when the regulations were first proposed by DOL, questioning the lawfulness of the proposed regulations and also raising many practical concerns about the added administrative burdens and expenses. A summary of the April rule can be found here.