By Clint Thompson
Ag labor reform is currently a dream that industry experts hope will soon become a reality. Hopefully, it will occur by the end of the year.
U.S. Representative GT Thompson (PA-15) has already introduced Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act of 2026,legislation that would improve accessibility and labor costs with the H-2A program. H-2A reform was a focus of this week’s Georgia Ag Labor Forum in Tifton, Georgia.
John Hollay, president and CEO of the National Council of Agricultural Employers (NCAE), was part of a group panel that addressed multiple areas of the program. He also answered the challenging question: Why should specialty crop growers be optimistic that this is finally the year for reform?
“Well, No. 1, we have a bipartisan piece of legislation that’s continuing to pick up support even when members of Congress are back home hearing from constituents. So that’s obviously a positive right there. The president has shown a willingness to engage publicly and without prompting on this issue because he really understands the challenges that employers face in trying to get the workers that they need,” Hollay said. “The other piece is that obviously we have a court out in California that is considering a challenge from UFW (United Farm Workers) to the law or to the regulation.
“If that is successful, that would be a dramatic wage increase that would completely undo the president’s interim final rule. I think those are things that are going to motivate Congress to act. Obviously, they shouldn’t need additional motivation this year to act. It’s a 40-year struggle. I think there’s just some pieces that are coming together at the right time, despite the fact that it’s a limited window of time to actually get something done.”
Momentum
Momentum is suddenly on the side of farmers and industry leaders.
“I think momentum brings detractors. That’s always the case. And we certainly have some folks that are attacking the bill, but I don’t think all their attacks are landing,” Hollay said. “I think we’ve seen that the president and the administration have made clear that particularly the interim final rule piece of the legislation is their priority. We’ve got to make sure that happens.”