U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman issued the following statement on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Wednesday announcement that it will make available an additional 65,000 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas for fiscal year FY23:
“After months of vociferous advocacy from the U.S. Travel Association, this announcement—the largest ever supplemental visa release—is a lifeline for an industry whose workforce shortage tops a million open positions. This will provide the travel industry with thousands of workers ahead of the peak travel season, allowing businesses to adequately prepare for a surge in demand.
“U.S. Travel is a vocal advocate for increasing the cap of H-2B visas, and we will continue to call on Congress to pass an exemption to the cap in FY23 and enact a permanent expansion of the H-2B program.
“We extend our gratitude to Secretary Mayorkas and the Biden administration for their swift response to such a critical workforce need and their ongoing support of the travel industry’s recovery.”
U.S. Travel Association is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the travel industry. Travelers in the United States are estimated to spend $1.1 trillion in 2022 (still 10% below 2019 levels). U.S. Travel advocates for policies to accelerate an even recovery across the travel industry and restore economic and job growth for this essential contributor to our nation’s success. Visit ustravel.org for information and recovery-related data.
