Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Larry Craig (R-Idaho), Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), Mel Martinez (R-Fla.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), and George Voinovich (R-Ohio) today introduced legislation to address the growing agriculture worker shortage.

The AgJOBS bill would establish a pilot earned adjustment program for agriculture workers, which would help to ease the severe worker shortage being experienced by frustrated farmers across the country.

“Today, many American farmers are on a precipice. And whether they survive to plant another season is determined largely on one simple question:  will there be enough workers to bring in the harvest?” Senator Feinstein said. “There are plenty of people willing and able to do the work.  And these workers deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.”

“The AgJOBS bill is a two-part bill. Part one would create a pilot program to identify undocumented agricultural workers and legalize the immigration status for those who have been working in the United States for the past two years or more. The second part would create a more usable H-2A program to implement a realistic and effective guest worker program.”