The 2025 Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) were published in the Federal Register on December 16.  The new by state are shown below:

For H2A payroll starting December 30th:

TX         current rate $15.55             new rate $15.79                  inc 1.52%

KS          current rate $18.32             new rate $19.21                  inc 4.63%

For H2A payroll starting December 16th:

NM        current rate $16.32             new rate $17.04                  inc 4.23%

As mentioned in our earlier story about the AEWR changes, employers used to have a 14-day grace period after the wages were published in the Federal Register before converting to the new wage rate.  The Department of Labor (DOL) is attempting to change this grace period via a newly proposed Farmworker Protection rule.  A recent ruling in the US District Court for the Southern District of Georgia issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the DOL from enforcing the new rule.  There are 17 states affected by this ruling: Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

Therefore, currently Texas and Kansas cotton gins with H2A employees must pay this new AEWR rate starting December 30.  New Mexico cotton gins with H2A employees must pay this new AEWR rate starting December 16.

If you have any H-2A workers on staff, you must increase their wages to this new rate regardless of current contract terms.  The AEWR applies to various classifications which include 45-2091 (Agricultural Equipment Operators).  This is the classification for most of the H-2A workers in the cotton gins.

Please contact us if you have questions about this, or any other issues affecting your operation.