The United States Department of State has announced that the Biden administration increased the number of temporary work visas for Haiti, as well as for countries in the region, including Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, with which it seeks to reduce the illegal immigration.
In particular, H-2B visas, which allow non-citizen workers to enter the United States to meet employment needs in key sectors such as hospitality, tourism, landscaping, and seafood processing.
These sectors are highly dependent on seasonal workers, and the increase in the issuance of H-2B visas would be part of a larger effort to maintain economic growth and meet labor demand in the country.
For fiscal year 2023, authorities would have announced about 65,000 additional H-2B visas for temporary non-agricultural workers traveling to the United States. Of these, 20,000 would have been assigned to workers from Haiti, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, and so far, 57,000 of these visas have already been issued.
The H-2B program allows companies to temporarily hire foreign workers to perform non-agricultural work or services in the United States, under the requirement that the employment be for a limited period of time and that there is a temporary need for the labor or supplies. services to perform.
The North American country highlighted that US hospitality, tourism, landscaping, seafood processing and other companies depend on seasonal workers, and that temporary work visas allow non-citizen workers to enter US territory to help meet the needs of these sectors.
Source : Observer