NRA lauds visa extension to returning temporary workers

WASHINGTON -- The National Restaurant Association has applauded the U.S. Senate for approving a one-year extension of temporary work visas for foreign workers returning to the United States.

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The extension for the H-2B returning-worker program passed as an amendment to an appropriations bill in mid-October. The language will extend a critical provision of the Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act that expired Sept. 30.

Extending the relief provision by one year will help a wide range of small businesses, including restaurants, which currently lack enough U.S. workers to fill job vacancies, NRA officials noted.

The exemption lets employees who have participated in the H-2B seasonal-visa program in at least one of the past three years return to a U.S. job without counting against the annual 66,000-visa limit.

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