The full economic contributions of the food and agriculture industries is estimated to be nearly $7 trillion dollars. The industries account for nearly one-fifth of the country's economic activity, directly contributing $2.7 trillion to the U.S. gross domestic product-and supporting more than 40 million jobs.       The key to the success of these is millions of farmworkers. The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on the importance of these workers and the contributions to our nation's food security, and simultaneously highlighted challenges of labor instability, irregular migration, and the need for increased labor protections-in order to increase the resiliency of our food system and supply chain.

To address these challenges, the U.S.D.A. in coordination with the other federal agencies will develop a pilot program utilizing up to $65 million in American rescue plan funding to provide support for agricultural employees in implementing robust health and safety standards to promote a safe, healthy work environment for both U.S. workers and workers hired via northern central American countries under The 'seasonal H-2A Visa Program'.      Strong working conditions are critical to the resiiency of the food and agricultural supply chain. The USDA will support efforts to improve working conditions for both U.S. and H-2A workers and ensure that H-2A workers are not subject to unfair recruitment practices.

USDA will also partner with the United Farm Workers of America (UFW) through a technical assistance cooperative agreement to inform development of the pilot program. UFW will work with relevand stakeholders, including farmers, farmworkers, farmworker advocates, and Unions, to ensure that the agency benefits from a wide range of views. After the consultation and program development phase, USDA intends to launch a competative pilot program ahead of the growing season in 2023.