Employer and Migrant Labor Contractor Information

The Department of Workforce Development (DWD)'s Bureau of Job Service administers Wisconsin's migrant laws. Wis. Stat. §§ 103.90 to 103.97 and Wis. Admin. Code Ch. DWD 301 govern the use of agricultural migrant labor in Wisconsin. Below is some information to assist employer and migrant labor contractors comply with Wisconsin's state migrant law.

A migrant worker is any person who meets all the following:

• Temporarily leaves a principal place of residence that is outside of Wisconsin;
• Comes to Wisconsin for not more than 10 months in a year;
• For seasonal employment; and
• The employment is in the planting, cultivating, raising, harvesting, handling, drying, packing, packaging, processing, freezing, grading or storing of any agricultural or horticultural commodity in its unmanufactured state.

State Migrant Law Applies to:

• Any employer in planting, cultivating, raising, harvesting, handling, drying, packing, packaging, processing, freezing, grading or storing of any agricultural or horticultural commodity who hires migrant workers Wis. Stat. § 103.90(2)
• A migrant labor contractor (and their employees/agents) who recruits, solicits, hires, or furnishes migrant workers on behalf of an employer. Wis. Stat. § 103.90(4)

Migrant Worker Written Recruiting Disclosure Statements and Worker Agreements

All employers or migrant labor contractor who recruit or hire migrant workers must provide the following:

1. Written Recruiting Disclosure Statements

Migrant workers must be provided a written recruiting disclosure statement at the time of their recruitment. Wis Stat §103.915(1)(a) This document is created by the employer, contractor, or recruiter and provides the worker information related to the terms of employment for which the worker is being recruited.

• The written recruiting disclosure statement must include the same information that is required in a work agreement:
  • A statement on the place of employment
  • Kind of work available
  • The positions related to planting, cultivating, raising, harvesting, handling, drying, packing, packaging, processing, freezing, grading, or storing any agricultural or horticultural commodity in its unmanufactured state.
  • Applicable wage rates
  • Pay period
  • Approximate hours of employment including overtime applicable
  • Term of employment including approximate beginning and ending dates
  • Kind of housing and any charges in connection therewith
  • A description of cooking, bathing, laundry, and toilet facilities.
  • A statement on the maximum number of people to be accommodated in the following:
    • If the work agreement is for employment of a single person, the sleeping area to which the person will be assigned.
    • If the work agreement is for employment of a family, the housing unit to which the family will be assigned.
  • Cost of meals if provided by the employer
  • Transportation arrangements
  • Transportation costs, if any, paid by the worker
  • If the employer makes a payroll deduction for a travel or subsistence advance, the rate of the deduction.
  • If the employer provides transportation for the worker, the specific mode of transportation, including the type of vehicle used.
  • The names of all people in the family employed if a family is employed
  • Any other charges or deductions from wages beyond those required by law
  • Minimum work guarantee as described in Wis. Stat. § 103.915(4)(b)
  • If the worker is paid on a piece rate basis, the applicable wage rate included in the work agreement shall be the employer's guaranteed hourly rate.
    • If at the time of recruitment, the employer cannot anticipate the exact rate the worker will be paid, the work agreement shall specify a base rate which shall be not less than the base rate paid by the employer at the end of the preceding season for the kind of work specified, together with the words “or more” or similar phrase.
  • If the applicable wage rate to be paid includes a bonus provision, the work agreement shall clearly state the conditions under which the bonus shall be paid or forfeited.
    • A work agreement may not state that a migrant worker must continue to work “until the end of the harvest” as a condition to receive a bonus.
    • A bonus may be conditioned on a worker continuing to work up to 7 days beyond the approximate ending date in the work agreement.
• It can be provided via email, fax, mail, text, etc.
• The employer/contractor must keep a copy of the written recruiting disclosure for each migrant worker and have it available upon request for inspection.
  • In 2020, DWD introduced the Written Disclosure Statement Verification (DETB-18754-S) form. This form is NOT a substitute for a written recruiting disclosure statement.
  • The Written Disclosure Statement Verification (DETB-18754) is a verification form that may be used by employers to demonstrate that they provided migrant workers with the written recruiting disclosure at the time of recruitment. The written recruiting disclosure statement provided at the time of recruitment must be attached to it the DET-18754.
    • If a Written Disclosure Statement Verification (DETB-18754) form is used, both the form and the written disclosure statement it must also be available upon request for inspection.

2. Migrant Work Agreements

Migrant workers must be provided a written work agreement that is signed by the employer and by each migrant worker or head of a family, if a family is employed at the time of hire.

• The worker agreement must include all information specified under Wis Stat §103.915 and Wis. Admin. § DWD 301.06.
• The terms of the work agreement must be equal to or greater than what was provided on the written recruiting disclosure statement.
  • Pursuant to Wis. Stat. 103.915(2), H-2A employers may use the DWD template or DWD will accept the ETA-790 if it contains all of the elements required under Wis Stat §103.915 and Wis. Admin. § DWD 301.06.

Migrant Labor Contractors and Employees/Agents of Migrant Labor Contractors

A migrant labor contractor is any person or business who recruits, solicits, hires, or furnishes migrant workers, excluding members of the contractor's immediate family, on behalf of another person or employer for employment in Wisconsin. This does not include an employer or any full-time regular employees of an employer who engages in any such activity for the purpose of supplying workers solely for the employer's own operation. However, if an employer hires staff part-time to recruit, solicit, hire, or furnish migrant workers, the staff must register as a migrant labor contractor.

All migrant labor contractors must register and be certified to conduct business in Wisconsin. Migrant labor contractors can register as an individual or as a business, LLC, corporation, etc.

Employees/agents doing work on behalf of a migrant labor contractor must also apply with DWD to receive an "Agent Identification Card." Employees/Agents of a migrant labor contractor must meet the same application requirements but do not have to pay the registration fee.

Migrant Labor Contractor Certification

To obtain certification, mail or email the following items to the Department of Workforce Development:

• Completed Parts I, III, and IV of the DETM-5234: Application for Migrant Labor Contractor and Employee/Agent of Migrant Labor Contractor to Operate in Wisconsin.
• A fee of $100 made out to The Department of Workforce Development (must be mailed).
• A copy of the applicant's U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Farm Labor Contractor (FLC) certificate.
• A completed Vehicle Mechanical Inspection Report (Form WH-514) for each vehicle that will be used to transport workers.
• A copy of a policy of insurance covering each vehicle to be used for the transportation of migrant workers showing that the policy is in full force and effect with policy coverages as described in Wis Admin Code § 301.05(8)(c) and Wis Stat § 103.91(8)(f).

Any updates to the information provided on the Application for Migrant Labor Contractor and Employee/Agent of Migrant Labor Contractor (DETM-5234), including contracting with additional employers, using additional vehicles, performing additional activities as it relates to migrant labor, etc., must be provided to the Department and approved before updates may take effect.

Employee/Agent of Migrant Labor Contractor Application

To obtain certification, mail or email the following items to the Department of Workforce Development:

• Completed Parts I, II, and IV of the DETM-5234: Application for Migrant Labor Contractor and Employee/Agent of Migrant Labor Contractor to Operate in Wisconsin
• A copy of the applicant's U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Farm Labor Contractor (FLC) certificate

Mailing address:

• Department of Workforce Development
• Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Programs
• Dane County Job Service
• 1819 Aberg Avenue, Ste. C
• Madison, WI 53704

Email: MSFW@dwd.wisconsin.gov

Migrant Labor Camp Operator Certification

A migrant labor camp is any site and structures maintained as living quarters for any migrant worker or any other person, who is not related or married to the employer, who travels to another location to accept seasonal agricultural employment as defined in Wis. Stat. § 103.90(3)(a). Per Wis. Stat. § 103.92(1), any person maintaining a migrant labor camp, including employers, business owners, and migrant labor contractors must apply for a certificate to operate.

Please visit the Migrant Labor Camps webpage for information on how to apply to operate a migrant labor camp in Wisconsin and other information.

MSFW Menu

• Wis. Stats. §§ 103.90 - 103.97
• Wis. Admin. Chapter DWD 301