Comment from AFL-CIO
AFL-CIOSupportUnion
Summary: The AFL-CIO supports the proposed rule because it takes "overdue steps" to bring H-1B wage levels closer to prevailing rates and protects workers from being used as tools to suppress wages. However, they also call for broader reforms, including stricter oversight of employer misclassification, the exclusion of staffing companies from the H-1B program, and enhanced protections for foreign workers.
The AFL-CIO calls for a broad policy agenda that respects and protects all workers, regardless of immigration status, and helps to raise wages and standards for all types of work. America’s unions have long advocated for fundamental reforms to ensure enforceable workers’ rights and labor standards in all employment-based visa programs, including H-1B. Requiring payment of fair wages is key to preventing employer misuse of visa programs as a tool to pit workers against each other, and this rule takes overdue steps to bring wage levels closer to prevailing rates. While we support the proposed changes, and in particular the deference to collectively bargained wages, we also emphasize that broader reforms of both policy and practice will be needed to ensure fair pay and treatment of all workers in affected industries. The attached comment details our recommendations.