Forestry Associations Submit Comments to Dept. of Labor on Reforestation Labor

Last week, SLMA, along with 37 other forestry and forest products associations, submitted comments to the Department of Labor regarding a proposal to move forestry activities from the H-2B visa program to the H-2A visa program. The comments highlight problems that would be caused by the proposal, including greater costs and administrative burdens on employers than are present in the current H-2B program due to different housing requirements. Additionally, the change would require each reforestation crew to have a separate itinerary and for each itinerary to be submitted with a separate H-2A application.