By Clint Thompson
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr is imploring the Department of Labor (DOL) to explain the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) and pause the scheduled increases producers are saddled with this year.
In a letter addressed to Julie Su, Deputy Secretary of Labor, and Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture, Carr stressed that the DOL’s updated rule would have “serious and harmful effect” on Georgia’s producers, which contribute to $69 billion to the state’s economy.
“The lack of transparency concerning the methodology can only lead our constituents to reasonably assume these mandated wage increases were established arbitrarily and without regard for the wellbeing of Georgia farmers,” the letter read. “Therefore, we ask for more information on what methodology and raw data was used to justify the substantial wage increase and the discrepancy between the proposed AEWR and private sector rates. We also request that the increases are halted while we await the responses from your agencies and our office has the opportunity to evaluate them.”
With more than 42,000 farms and 9.9 million acres, a labor force is required for Georgia farmers to supply grocery stores and help feed the country. The new AEWR is $14.68 for Georgia. That marks a 21% increase in the past 14 months for the state’s specialty crop producers, which does not include costs for visa fees and those associated with travel and lodging. The trickle effect would be a greater reliance on foreign produce, Carr argued.
“Such a massive increase would devastate farmers and potentially collapse the agricultural landscape in Georgia. For farmers that use hundreds of H-2A laborers every season, this new policy would cost millions of dollars that they simply do not have,” Carr noted.