New H-2A Wage Rates start August 3, 2026
The Employment and Training Administration of the Department of Labor (DOL) has announced updates to the Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) for the employment of temporary or seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers (H-2A workers) to perform agricultural labor or services.
AEWRs are the minimum wage rates DOL has determined must be offered, advertised in recruitment, and paid by employers to H-2A workers and workers in corresponding employment so that the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed will not be adversely affected. The AEWRs are applicable to H-2A job opportunities classified: in Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes other than the six SOC codes comprising the field and livestock workers (combined) group, and in the field and livestock workers (combined) occupational group that are located in States or regions, or equivalent districts or territories, for which the United States Department of Agriculture's Farm Labor Report (better known as the Farm Labor Survey, or FLS) does not report a wage.
These new rates are effective immediately in California as of August 3, 2026.
The DOL has published a spreadsheet outlining the AEWRs for U.S. and H-2A workers in the field and livestock worker category. In California, the rates are as follows:
AEWRs for U.S workers AEWRs for H-2A workers
Field and Livestock Worker Category* Field and Livestock Worker Category*
Skill Level I Skill Level II Skill Level I Skill Level II
$16.59 $18.60 $13.52 $15.53
*These numbers found in the first tab of the spreadsheet apply to the “Big 5” agricultural occupations: 45-2041 Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products; 45-2091 Agricultural Equipment Operators; 45-2092 Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse; 45-2093 Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals; 53-7064 Packers and Packagers, Hand
** The second tab of the spreadsheet applies to all other “non-Big 5” occupations
DOL H-2A regulations provide that employers must pay their H-2A workers in non-range occupations and workers in corresponding employment at least the highest of various wage sources, including the AEWR. Further, when the AEWR is updated during a work contract, the employer must pay at least that updated AEWR upon the effective date of the new AEWR, if the updated AEWR is higher than the highest of the previous AEWR, a prevailing rate for the crop activity or agricultural activity and, if applicable, a distinct work task or tasks performed in that activity and geographic area, the agreed-upon collective bargaining wage, the Federal minimum wage rate, or the State minimum wage rate. Similarly, when the AEWR is updated during a work contract and is lower than the wage rate that is guaranteed on the job order, the employer must continue to pay at least the wage rate guaranteed on the job order.
Thus, because the minimum wage in California is $16.90 through the rest of 2026, the numbers below the minimum wage rate above (1st, 3rd and 4th columns) must be adjusted up to match the minimum wage. In addition, if a city or county wage rate is even higher than the minimum wage, it must be adjusted up to that amount.
You can review the updated spreadsheet for all states and occupations here.
For questions regarding the updated wage rates or any other employment compliance issues, please contact Rosasco Law Group for all of your workplace needs.
