The Wisconsin Farm Bureau announced a new partnership with Great Lakes Ag Labor Service, a company started by the Michigan Farm Bureau to help producers hire workers through the federal H-2A visa program, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. The partnership will help statewide employers fill seasonal farm jobs by bringing in foreign workers for a limited time.
Employers of all sizes and producers of all commodities, from dairy to produce and more, use the program. The Great Lakes Ag Labor Service has also expanded to farm bureaus in Indiano, Ohio, and Texas, as demand for workers remains a pressing issue in the post-pandemic labor market. The company helps farms determine how to meet the federal program’s requirements, file applications, and recruit workers.
Farms are required to provide free housing and sometimes transportation to temporary workers, and the program is not a quick fix to labor shortages, but rather a longer-term solution for some farms.
