H-2A insights: 316 petitions filed by employers in Gainesville Business Daily coverage area in 2024

During 2024, employers in the Gainesville Business Daily coverage area submitted a total of 316 H-2A petitions, according to data provided by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services via the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services via the H-2A Employer Data Hub.

Out of these submissions, 270 petitions were approved, representing an approval rate of 85.4%, while 46 petitions were denied, accounting for 14.6%.

The H-2A visa program allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers for temporary or seasonal agricultural jobs when enough domestic workers are unavailable. Employers must demonstrate a short-term need and that hiring foreign workers will not negatively affect U.S. workers’ wages or working conditions. These jobs must first be offered to U.S. workers, and both domestic and H-2A workers must receive at least the highest of the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) or other wage benchmarks.

Nationally, the average approval rate for H-2A petitions in 2024 was 98.8%, a slight increase from the 98.4% approval rate recorded in 2023.

The Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting industry led the H-2A filings in Gainesville Business Daily publication area during 2024, with 314 petitions (99.4% of all submissions), and an approval rate of 85.4%. Meanwhile, the Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation industry was the second largest contributor, filing two petitions (0.6% of the total), with an approval rate of 100%.

In the Gainesville Business Daily publication area, the Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting sector dominated H-2A petition filings in 2024 with 314 petitions, accounting for 99.4% of all submissions and an approval rate of 85.4%. The Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation industry ranked second, submitting two petitions (0.6% of the total) with a 100% approval rate.

Among local employers, Lands Palm Trees, Inc. filed the most H-2A petitions in 2024 with 80 submissions but had an approval rate of 50%. Fresh Land Farm, Inc. followed with 57 petitions and a perfect approval rate of 100%.

The number of H-2A petitions filed in the Gainesville Business Daily coverage area declined by 9.1% in 2024 compared to the previous year.

Public opinion on immigration varies, with 46% of Americans favoring maintaining current legal immigration levels, according to a 2024 Pew Research Center survey. Additionally, 42% believe that highly skilled workers, such as scientists, doctors, and programmers, should be prioritized for legal immigration, compared to 25% who prioritize workers filling labor shortages and 19% who emphasize family sponsorship. Despite this, family sponsorship remains the most common path to permanent residency, accounting for 63% of green cards issued in 2023.

Due to manual data entry and the use of paper forms by applicants or petitioners, occasional discrepancies in employer names, tax IDs, locations, or other details may be found in the H-2A Employer Data Hub provided by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is the data used in this article. Despite these potential issues, USCIS works to ensure accuracy.

Information in this story was obtained from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The source data can be found here.