Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 5 / Tuesday, January 8, 2013 / Notices 1259 

APPENDIX—Continued 

[18 TAA petitions instituted between 11/12/12 and 11/16/12] 

TA–W Subject Firm 

(Petitioners) Location Date of institution 

Date of 

petition 

82160 ............ Redman Card Clothing Company (State/OneStop).Andover, MA ................................................... 11/16/12 11/15/12 

82161 ............ Remington Medical Inc. (Workers) ................. Alpharetta, GA ................................................ 11/16/12 11/15/12 

[FR Doc. 2013–00098 Filed 1–7–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–FN–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Employment and Training 

Administration 

Labor Certification Process for the 

Temporary Employment of Aliens in 

Agriculture in the United States: 2013 

Adverse Effect Wage Rates 

AGENCY: Employment and Training 

Administration, Department of Labor. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Employment and 

Training Administration (ETA) of the 

Department of Labor (Department) is 

issuing this notice to announce the 2013 

Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWRs) for 

the employment of temporary or 

seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers 

(H–2A workers) to perform agricultural 

labor or services. 

AEWRs are the minimum wage rates 

the Department has determined must be 

offered and paid by employers to H–2A 

workers and workers in corresponding 

employment for a particular agricultural 

job and area so that the wages of 

similarly employed U.S. workers will 

not be adversely affected. 20 CFR 

655.100(b). In this notice, the 

Department announces the AEWRs for 

2013. 

DATES: Effective Date: This notice is 

effective January 8, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

William L. Carlson, Ph.D., 

Administrator, Office of Foreign Labor 

Certification, U.S. Department of Labor, 

Room C–4312, 200 Constitution Avenue 

NW., Washington, DC 20210. 

Telephone: 202–693–3010 (this is not a 

toll-free number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. 

Citizenship and Immigration Services of 

the Department of Homeland Security 

will not approve an employer’s petition 

for the admission of H–2A 

nonimmigrant temporary agricultural 

workers in the U.S. unless the petitioner 

has received from the Department an H– 

2A labor certification. The labor 

certification provides that: (1) There are 

not sufficient U.S. workers who are able, 

willing, and qualified and who will be 

available at the time and place needed 

to perform the labor or services involved 

in the petition; and (2) the employment 

of the foreign worker(s) in such labor or 

services will not adversely affect the 

wages and working conditions of 

workers in the U.S. similarly employed. 

8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a), 1184(c)(1), 

and 1188(a); 8 CFR 214.2(h)(5). 

Adverse Effect Wage Rates for 2013 

The Department’s H–2A regulations at 

20 CFR 655.120(l) provide that 

employers must pay their H–2A workers 

and workers in corresponding 

employment at least the highest of: (i) 

The AEWR; (ii) the prevailing hourly 

wage rate; (iii) the prevailing piece rate; 

(iv) the agreed-upon collective 

bargaining wage rate, if applicable; or 

(v) the Federal or State minimum wage 

rate, in effect at the time the work is 

performed. 

Except as otherwise provided in 20 

CFR part 655, subpart B, the regionwide AEWR for all agricultural 

employment (except those occupations 

deemed inappropriate under the special 

procedure provisions of 20 CFR 

655.102) for which temporary H–2A 

certification is being sought is equal to 

the annual weighted average hourly 

wage rate for field and livestock workers 

(combined) in the State or region as 

published annually by the United States 

Department of Agriculture (USDA). 20 

CFR 655.120(c) requires that the 

Administrator of the Office of Foreign 

Labor Certification publish the USDA 

field and livestock worker (combined) 

wage data as AEWRs in a Federal 

Register notice. Accordingly, the 2013 

AEWRs to be paid for agricultural work 

performed by U.S. and H–2A workers 

on or after the effective date of this 

notice are set forth in the table below: 

TABLE—2013 ADVERSE EFFECT WAGE

RATES

State 2013 

AEWRs 

Alabama .................................... $9.78 

Arizona ...................................... 9.73 

Arkansas ................................... 9.50 

TABLE—2013 ADVERSE EFFECT WAGE

RATES—Continued 

State 2013 

AEWRs 

California ................................... 10.74 

Colorado ................................... 10.08 

Connecticut ............................... 10.91 

Delaware ................................... 10.87 

Florida ....................................... 9.97 

Georgia ..................................... 9.78 

Hawaii ....................................... 12.72 

Idaho ......................................... 9.99 

Illinois ........................................ 11.74 

Indiana ...................................... 11.74 

Iowa .......................................... 11.41 

Kansas ...................................... 12.33 

Kentucky ................................... 9.80 

Louisiana .................................. 9.50 

Maine ........................................ 10.91 

Maryland ................................... 10.87 

Massachusetts .......................... 10.91 

Michigan ................................... 11.30 

Minnesota ................................. 11.30 

Mississippi ................................ 9.50 

Missouri .................................... 11.41 

Montana .................................... 9.99 

Nebraska .................................. 12.33 

Nevada ..................................... 10.08 

New Hampshire ........................ 10.91 

New Jersey ............................... 10.87 

New Mexico .............................. 9.73 

New York .................................. 10.91 

North Carolina .......................... 9.68 

North Dakota ............................ 12.33 

Ohio .......................................... 11.74 

Oklahoma ................................. 10.18 

Oregon ...................................... 12.00 

Pennsylvania ............................ 10.87 

Rhode Island ............................ 10.91 

South Carolina .......................... 9.78 

South Dakota ............................ 12.33 

Tennessee ................................ 9.80 

Texas ........................................ 10.18 

Utah .......................................... 10.08 

Vermont .................................... 10.91 

Virginia ...................................... 9.68 

Washington ............................... 12.00 

West Virginia ............................ 9.80 

Wisconsin ................................. 11.30 

Wyoming ................................... 9.99 

Pursuant to the H–2A regulations at 

20 CFR 655.173, the Department will 

publish a separate Federal Register 

notice in early 2013 to announce (1) the 

allowable charges for 2013 that 

employers seeking H–2A workers may 

charge their workers for providing them 

three meals a day; and (2) the maximum 

travel subsistence reimbursement that a 

worker with receipts may claim in 2013. 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with 
1260 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 5 / Tuesday, January 8, 2013 / Notices 

1 In accordance with ET Handbook 385, the 

SWAs only report the wage findings for occupations 

that are present in the wage reporting area; 

prevailing wage rates are established only for those 

States where the activity subject to the special 

procedure is actually performed. 

Signed in Washington, DC on this 13th day 

of December, 2012. 

Jane Oates, 

Assistant Secretary, Employment and 

Training Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2013–00117 Filed 1–7–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–FP–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Employment and Training 

Administration 

Labor Certification Process for the 

Temporary Employment of Aliens in 

Agriculture in the United States: 

Prevailing Wage Rates for Certain 

Occupations Processed Under H–2A 

Special Procedures 

AGENCY: Employment and Training 

Administration, Labor. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (we 

or the Department) is issuing this notice 

to announce new prevailing wage and 

piece rates covering the employment of 

temporary or seasonal nonimmigrant 

foreign workers (H–2A workers) and 

corresponding employees to perform 

agricultural labor or services in certain 

occupations with special procedures 

established under 20 CFR 655.102 in the 

H–2A program, including open range 

production of livestock, itinerant animal 

shearing, sheepherding, goatherding, 

and custom combine operations. The 

new prevailing wages are based on 

surveys conducted by State Workforce 

Agencies (SWA) of employers and 

transmitted to the Department between 

May 1, 2012 and June 1, 2012 in 

accordance with the Department’s 

Training and Employment Guidance 

Letters (TEGLs) for these occupations. 

For open range production of livestock, 

sheepherding, and goatherding 

occupations, which are characterized by 

other than a reasonably regular workday 

or workweek, the prevailing wage 

results, reflected as monthly or daily 

prevailing wage rates, are deemed to be 

the Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) 

for those occupations. 

DATES: This notice is effective January 8, 

2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information, contact William L. 

Carlson, Ph.D., Administrator, Office of 

Foreign Labor Certification, 

Employment and Training 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., 

Room C–4312, Washington, DC 20210; 

Telephone (202) 693–3010 (this is not a 

toll-free number). Individuals with 

hearing or speech impairments may 

access the telephone number above via 

TTY by calling the toll-free Federal 

Information Relay Service at 1–800– 

877–8339. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The H–2A 

nonimmigrant worker visa program 

enables United States (U.S.) agricultural 

employers to employ foreign workers on 

a temporary basis to perform 

agricultural labor or services. Section 

101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a) of the Immigration 

and Nationality Act (INA or the Act), 8 

U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a); see also 8 

U.S.C. 1184(c)(1) and 1188. The INA 

authorizes the Secretary of the 

Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS) to permit employers to import 

foreign workers to perform temporary 

agricultural labor or services of a 

temporary or seasonal nature if the 

Secretary of the U.S. DOL (Secretary) 

certifies that: (1) There are not sufficient 

U.S. workers who are able, willing, and 

qualified, and who will be available at 

the time and place needed to perform 

the labor or services involved in the 

petition; and (2) the employment of the 

foreign worker(s) in such labor or 

services will not adversely affect the 

wages and working conditions of 

workers in the U.S. similarly employed. 

8 U.S.C. 1188(a)(1). The Department’s 

H–2A regulations at 20 CFR 655.120(a) 

provide that employers must pay their 

H–2A workers and workers in 

corresponding employment at least the 

highest of: (i) The AEWR; (ii) the 

prevailing hourly wage or piece rate; 

(iii) the agreed-upon collective 

bargaining wage, if applicable; or (iv) 

the Federal or State minimum wage, in 

effect at the time the work is performed, 

except where a special procedure has 

been approved for use in an occupation 

or specific class of agricultural 

employment. 

On June 14, 2011, the Department 

issued four TEGLs revising special 

procedures for occupations involved in 

the open range production of livestock, 

itinerant animal shearing, sheepherding 

and goatherding, and custom combine 

operations in the H–2A program. TEGL 

No. 15–06, Change 1, Special 

Procedures: Labor Certification Process 

for Occupations Involved in the Open 

Range Production of Livestock under the 

H–2A Program; TEGL No. 17–06, 

Change 1, Special Procedures: Labor 

Certification Process for Employers in 

the Itinerant Animal Shearing Industry 

under the H–2A Program; TEGL No. 32– 

10: Special Procedures: Labor 

Certification Process for Employers 

Engaged in Sheepherding and 

Goatherding Occupations under the H– 

2A Program; and TEGL No. 16–06, 

Change 1, Special Procedures: Labor 

Certification Process for Multi-State 

Custom Combine Owners/Operators 

under the H–2A Program. These revised 

special procedures clarified the process 

for establishing the annual prevailing 

wage and/or piece rates for those 

occupations, but largely continued 

industry-specific variances to the 

offered wage requirement. For example, 

since occupations involving the open 

range production of livestock, 

sheepherding and/or goatherding are 

characterized by other than a reasonably 

regular workday or workweek, the 

Department has continued a special 

variance to the offered wage 

requirements contained at 20 CFR 

655.120(a) by permitting an employer to 

offer, advertise in the course of its 

recruitment, and pay the daily, monthly, 

weekly, or semi-monthly prevailing 

wage established by the Department for 

each State in an approved itinerary. As 

provided in the H–2A regulations at 20 

CFR 655.102, for open range production 

of livestock, sheepherding, and 

goatherding occupations, which are 

characterized by other than a reasonably 

regular workday or workweek, the 

prevailing wage results, reflected as 

monthly or daily prevailing wage rates, 

are deemed to be the Adverse Effect 

Wage Rates (AEWR) for those 

occupations. 

As described in each of the TEGLs, 

the Department continues to use 

findings from prevailing wage surveys 

conducted by the SWAs in accordance 

with the procedures in the ET 

Handbook No. 385, Domestic 

Agricultural In-Season Wage Finding 

Process, to determine the prevailing 

wage and/or piece rates for these 

occupations. The SWAs transmit their 

findings for occupations covered by the 

special procedures to the Office of 

Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) 

between May 1st and June 1st of each 

calendar year. Upon receipt of the wage 

findings and review of the SWAreported survey results, the OFLC 

publishes the new prevailing rates with 

an immediate effective date.1 For 

occupations involving the open range 

production of livestock, animal 

shearing, sheepherding and/or 

goatherding where the SWA survey 

results were insufficient to establish a 

prevailing wage rate for an occupation, 

due to inadequate sample size or 

another valid reason, the applicable 

TEGL’s wage setting procedures allow 

the Department to issue a prevailing 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with