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Improving Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Foreign Nationals in the United States
Plain English Summary
The Department of Labor (DOL) is proposing changes to how wages are calculated for foreign workers in the U.S. This affects employers who hire foreign nationals on temporary or permanent work visas, such as EB-2, EB-3, H-1B, H-1B1, or E-3. The DOL wants to ensure that the wages paid to these workers are more in line with what U.S. workers earn in similar jobs. The goal is to prevent employers from using these programs to pay foreign workers less than American workers, which could hurt the job market for U.S. citizens. Insurance agents should stay informed about these changes as they may impact the labor market and the types of coverage needed for businesses employing foreign workers.
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The Department of Labor (DOL or the Department) is issuing this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to solicit comments and public input regarding its proposal to revise Employment and Training Administration (ETA) regulations governing the prevailing wages for employment opportunities that United States (U.S.) employers seek to fill with alien workers on a permanent or temporary basis through certain EB-2 and EB-3 employment-based immigrant visas via the Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) program or through H-1B, H-1B1, or E-3 nonimmigrant visas. Specifically, DOL is proposing to amend its regulations governing the PERM program and Labor Condition Applications (LCAs) to incorporate changes to the computation of wage levels under the Department's four-tiered prevailing wage structure based on the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) wage survey administered by the Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). These proposed revisions aim to better align prevailing wage levels with the wages paid to U.S. workers who are similarly employed in the occupation and area of intended employment. The Department's proposed revisions also seek to strengthen program integrity by reducing the incentive for employers to use these programs to replace, rather than supplement, U.S. workers by employing lower-paid alien workers. In addition, the revision would enable the Department to more effectively ensure that the employment of immigrant and nonimmigrant workers admitted or otherwise provided one of the covered statuses does not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers.