U.S. Department of Labor issued the following announcement on Dec. 16.
After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Coco Sod Farms Inc. – an agricultural employer based in Okeechobee, Florida – has paid a $10,930 civil penalty for violating requirements of the H-2A visa program.
WHD investigators determined the employer housed its H-2A workers at a location different than they listed on the job order they used to secure the workers. The employer actually housed workers in a property that had not had a proper inspection. The employer used that property to lodge 14 employees in a 900-square-foot trailer, failing to meet the minimum requirement of 100 square feet per person. WHD also found the employer failed to make a person certified in first aid available to the camp, and failed to furnish a first-aid kit and fire extinguisher. Coco Sod Farms Inc. also failed to display a poster to notify employees of their rights under the law.
“Agricultural employers that bring in temporary guest workers on H-2A visas are responsible for complying with all the program’s provisions,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Tony Pham, in Miami, Florida. “We will continue to safeguard American jobs and hold employers that violate the law accountable. We offer a wealth of compliance information readily available to assist employers and farm labor contractors in understanding their obligations under the law. ”
The Department offers numerous resources to ensure employers have the tools they need to understand their responsibilities and to comply with federal law, such as online videos, confidential calls, or in-person visits to local WHD offices.
Original source can be found here.