Homing in on H-2A: An Overview of the Temporary Agricultural Program – National Agricultural Law Center

Homing in on H-2A:

An Overview of the Temporary Agricultural Program

You will learn:

Authorized by the Immigration and Nationality Act, the H-2A temporary agricultural program allows qualified agricultural employers who lack sufficient domestic labor to petition the federal government for permission to bring nonimmigrant foreign workers into the United States for temporary or seasonal agricultural employment. According to recent USDA data, “the number of H-2A positions requested and approved has increased more than sevenfold in the past 19 years, from just over 48,000 positions certified in fiscal year 2005 to around 385,000 in FY 2024,” up from 370,000 in FY 2022. This webinar will provide an overview of the major provisions of the H-2A program—including a discussion of the adverse effect wage rate (AEWR) and its calculation and application to U.S. employees—and describe the requirements, processes, and legal issues related to obtaining and employing H-2A employees.

Event Details:

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. (ET)

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (CT)

You will hear:

Audry Thompson, Staff Attorney, Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law

Audry is a staff attorney with the Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law (CASL) where she serves as the program director of the Understanding Agricultural Law educational series, supervises law students in the Rural Economic Development Clinic, and authors the Agricultural Law Weekly Review. Her research explores all aspects of agricultural labor issues, and she currently serves as the lead CASL attorney for AgWorks, an agricultural labor-focused educational and consulting grant project between CASL, Penn State Extension, and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry. Audry holds a Juris Doctor from Penn State Dickinson Law and is a licensed attorney in Pennsylvania. Audry is also a Ph.D. doctoral candidate at Penn State’s College of Education, and her forthcoming dissertation will examine clinical legal education. 

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