HB82: HB82 Georgia Guest Worker Act; enact

Georgia currently has no state administered program for bringing in foreign workers; guest worker programs exist only at the federal level. This bill would create one inside the Department of Labor. The Commissioner of Labor would first have to study whether a real labor shortage exists in a given industry before allowing employers to hire guest workers to fill it. Employers who want to hire guest workers would have to pay a fee, provide health insurance and workers' compensation, cover transportation costs, and pay at least the highest of several possible wage rates. Guest workers would get one-year authorizations, renewable if the shortage continues, and would carry state identification cards. Violating employers could face civil fines up to $5,000 per violation, and guest workers who fail to leave the state after their authorization ends could face felony charges. The chapter would not take effect until the Attorney General certifies the program can legally operate under state and federal law.

• Directs the Commissioner of Labor to create a state administered guest worker program to fill documented labor shortages in Georgia industries.
• Requires the Commissioner to study labor markets and certify a shortage exists before any guest workers can be authorized for an industry.
• Sets employer obligations including paying fees, wages, health insurance, workers' compensation, transportation costs, and housing standards for guest workers.
• Grants guest workers and family members one-year renewable authorizations and state issued identification cards they must carry.
• Creates a civil fine of up to $5,000 per violation for employers and felony penalties for guest workers who don't leave Georgia after their authorization ends.
• Delays the whole chapter's effect until the Attorney General certifies the program can lawfully operate under state and federal law.

Georgia employers seeking to hire foreign labor, foreign nationals who could become guest workers and their immediate family members, the Department of Labor and Commissioner of Labor who would run the program, and existing workers in industries where labor shortages are studied.

If enacted and later certified as legal, the program would give Georgia employers a new legal channel to hire foreign workers for documented labor shortages, while imposing new wage, housing, and insurance obligations on those employers and creating criminal exposure for guest workers who overstay their authorization.

• Section 2 adds new Chapter 11 to Title 34, creating the guest worker program under the Commissioner of Labor (O.C.G.A. § 34-11-1).
• O.C.G.A. § 34-11-3 requires the Commissioner to study the labor force and confirm a genuine shortage before allowing hiring in an industry.
• O.C.G.A. § 34-11-4 bars people with felony convictions, prior deportations, or prior visa refusals from participating as guest workers.
• O.C.G.A. § 34-11-5 lists 13 employer obligations, including paying fees, wages, transportation, insurance, and housing standards.
• O.C.G.A. § 34-11-6 sets one-year authorizations renewable if a labor shortage continues, plus identification card requirements.
• O.C.G.A. § 34-11-7 sets civil fines up to $5,000 for employer violations and felony penalties (one to five years, up to $10,000 fine) for guest workers who don't leave on time.
• O.C.G.A. § 34-11-9 delays the chapter's effectiveness until the Attorney General certifies the program is legal under state and federal law.
• Section 3 makes the overall Act effective upon the Governor's signature or upon becoming law without it.

1. 2025-01-27House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-01-17House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-01-16House Hopper (House)

• Matt Reeves (R, HD-099)Primary sponsor
• Reynaldo Martinez (R, HD-111)
• Mary Oliver (D, HD-084)
• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)
• William Werkheiser (R, HD-157)
• Shelly Hutchinson (D, HD-106)

• immigration and labor
• guest worker program
• Georgia Department of Labor
• employment law
• workers' rights