H-2B Visa Increase Will Have Little Impact on Racing Industry

[Wandering Eyes]

The news that the Department of Homeland Security would provide businesses another 15,500 H-2B visas this summer will have little impact on the racing industry, said the NTRA’s Alex Waldrop. The visas allow low-skilled foreign workers into the country, and as is capped by statute at 66,000.

The DHS did the same thing last summer after businesses complained that their were severely hampered without the foreign workers, who typically fill restaurant, hotel and other jobs, and often work on America’s backstretches.

“This increase is to the H-2B non-agriculture guest worker program so it will alleviate to some extent the shortage of visas for Thoroughbred trainers needing backstretch workers,” said Waldrop, who added that breeding farms in Kentucky, also suffering from a lack of workers, would not feel any relief from this move. “Central Kentucky farms mainly use the H-2A program for foreign temporary workers, which is burdensome to obtain but not capped at 66,000 nationwide like the H-2B program. This is the same temporary relief granted last summer and once again it is probably too little, too late since the period for these visas ends in September and the increase hardly addresses the significant demand for guest workers. H-2B visas are used by a broad range of seasonal non-agriculture employers like hotels, theme parks, landscapers and the fishing and logging industries in addition to horse trainers.”

 

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