On 25 November 2025, 18 individual farm workers, the United Farm Workers of America, and the UFW Foundation filed a lawsuit seeking to reverse the Trump administration's H-2A wage rule. The plaintiffs argue that the rule lowers wages for U.S. agricultural workers and expands the use of the H-2A guest worker programme.
The filing states that the H-2A programme has grown substantially, with nearly 400,000 foreign workers in 2024 and no annual visa cap. According to the lawsuit, the new rule issued by the Department of Labor on 2 October cuts H-2A wages by between 5 and 7 dollars per hour. The administration estimates that the rule shifts 2.46 billion dollars in wages per year from workers to employers. The plaintiffs say the rule will also reduce wages for U.S. workers employed at the same sites and make it financially easier for employers to hire foreign guest workers.
The complaint argues that the rule was issued without the required public comment period under the Administrative Procedure Act. A similar rule proposed in 2020 was blocked after litigation brought by the UFW and the UFW Foundation.
© UFW Foundation
The new case was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California. The plaintiffs are represented by Covington & Burling, Farmworker Justice, Martinez Aguilasocho Law, and the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation. Workers from Michigan, Georgia, California, Washington, Texas, and Missouri are listed as plaintiffs.
One plaintiff, strawberry worker Isabel Panfilo, stated: "I am U.S.-born, U.S. citizen, and I harvest strawberries while also going to school. When I run out of financial aid, I am responsible for covering my tuition. It's difficult with the wages I earn."
Teresa Romero of the United Farm Workers said: "President Trump's wage cuts serve only one purpose: they make it easier for big agricultural corporations to exploit cheap foreign labor through the H-2A program and replace American farm workers."
Erica Lomeli Corcoran of the UFW Foundation added: "The farm workers who feed all of us while performing back-breaking work out in the unforgiving sun for hours a day should be able to also feed themselves and their families with the wages they make."
Representatives from Covington & Burling, Farmworker Justice, Martinez Aguilasocho Law, and the CRLA Foundation also commented that the rule would depress wages, harm U.S. agricultural workers, and violate statutory requirements protecting domestic labor conditions.
The plaintiffs seek to have the new H-2A wage regulation vacated and to reinstate protections for U.S. farm worker wages and job access.
For more information:
UFW Foundation
Tel: +1 877 881 8281
Email: [email protected]
www.ufwfoundation.org
