Employer‑Tied H‑2A Visas Invite Abuse

The H‑2A farmworker program promises legal jobs, housing, and better pay, but tying workers’ status to a single employer and relying on overseas brokers creates leverage for illegal fees, retaliation, and even sexual exploitation. In Georgia, brokers transported workers long distances, controlled housing, and allegedly preyed on vulnerable recruits. Oversight remains thin despite rapid program growth, enabling trafficking‑like conditions under a legal façade. — This challenges the assumption that expanding 'legal pathways' alone protects migrants, showing that visa design and enforcement capacity determine whether legality prevents or enables abuse.