NEWS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Lisa Stryker
VP, Communications & Marketing
Email: [email protected]

Contact: Andrew Bray
VP, Government Relations
[email protected]

Statement on the Suspension of H-2B Program Through 2020

FAIRFAX, Va. (June 23, 2020) – The National Association of Landscape Professionals is deeply disheartened by the President’s Executive Order suspending the entry of guest workers in the H-2B visa program through the remainder of 2020. The landscape industry is the largest user of the H-2B visa program, which is a vital component of landscaping’s seasonal business during critical times of the year when manual labor demands expand quickly.
 
As the Nation continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, H-2B workers will play an integral role in our economic recovery. H-2B workers support the hiring, promoting, and retaining of American workers and the expansion of the companies that use this valuable seasonal guest worker program. It’s unfortunate that President Trump has minimized the landscape industry’s specific labor needs in a way that will hurt landscape companies throughout the Nation.

We would hope that the President promptly reconsiders the executive order and amend the order to lessen the impacts on the landscape industry and the essential services we provide to the Nation as we look towards assisting in protecting people, their property, and the environment while bolstering a robust economic recovery in 2021. 

The National Association of Landscape Professionals represents an industry of approximately 1 million landscape, lawn care, irrigation, and tree care professionals. Through national advocacy campaigns, the association is growing the industry and its workforce. NALP offers its members professional development through education, networking, and training, certification, and accreditation programs. For more information about NALP, visit www.landscapeprofessionals.org.