Ogunquit innkeeper testifies for foreign worker program
Sarah Diment, owner of The Beachmere Inn in Ogunquit, testified before a congressional subcommittee Wednesday, asking federal lawmakers to retain a temporary guest worker program she says is crucial to Maine's seasonal businesses.
The Portland Press Herald reported Diment's Ogunquit inn is shorthanded this year because federal agencies stopped processing non-agricultural guest workers through the H-2B program from March 22 to early May.
That program has become the subject of scrutiny as federal lawmakers consider sweeping immigration reforms that could change American companies' access to guest workers.
The paper reported that around 60 companies have placed requests for 1,085 visas for temporary foreign workers this year. The companies, like The Beachmere Inn, must show that they advertised and attempted to hire U.S. workers for the positions before they can secure visas for foreign workers.
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