The U.S. Department of Labor has proposed a new, less-strict set of rules on getting visas for temporary guest workers.

Under existing regulations employers now have to prove

• they’ve recruited U.S. workers first before filling jobs with temporary foreign workers, or
• the wages offered for the jobs aren’t lower than the local average.

The proposals — published in the Federal Register along with other potential changes to worker-immigration laws — turn the tables on both those rules. Under the proposals, employers would not have to show that they first targeted recruiting efforts at U.S. workers, nor would there be any requirement for proving how the wages compare to the local average.

You have until July 7 to provide comments on the changes to DOL. (The procedure for providing comments is shown on the first page of the Federal Register proposal.)

Tags: department of labor, federal register, foreign workers, visas