Williston Herald - Renée Jean

H-2B Visas have been touted by some as the ideal way to fill seasonal, hard-to-hire, non-agricultural positions. But a report by Local Jobs North says they’re being used too often by some companies, to fill what would otherwise be desirable positions, all the expense of American workers.

The report has examined their use in North Dakota, Minnesota and South Dakota and says the program deprived North Dakota’s economy of $85 million, and western North Dakota of $23 million. The estimate was based on the spending patterns of such workers, who tend to send most of the money they make out of the country, to their families.

Among examples cited in the report was the construction of the Williston Basin International Airport, which opened in October of last year.

Read the full article here.