Hire International Students For Temporary Jobs

There are a lot of seasonal or otherwise temporary jobs in Vermont and in many cases it's hard to fill them with Vermonters, many of whom seek year-round long term employment.  Growing up in a ski town in southern Vermont, this dynamic is very familiar to me.  An article today in the Burlington Free Press highlights the challenges of using the H-2B temporary worker program for seasonal workers.  The H-2B visa program is designed for employment of international workers in positions that are seasonal, recurring, intermittent or for a one-time peak load situation.  There is a cap on the number of H-2B approvals available each year which is a challenge, plus now employers must pay travel expenses for H-2B workers.  The article in the Burlington Free Press mentioned that it's reasonably simple to hire international students for seasonal positions but the article didn't explain how that works. 

Hiring an international student for a season or a year can be a great way for a business to fill its own hiring need and participate in an international cultural experience right here at home.  You might benefit from having a foreign language speaker on staff, if your customers or vendors are not native English-speakers.  International students are eager to experience life in the United States, just like U.S. students are eager to study abroad.  The J-1 visa program is an excellent option for international students and others who want to come to the United States to work or study temporarily.  U.S. employers can hire temporary workers in J-1 status for a season or for up to a few years, depending on the type of employment.  J-1 sponsoring organizations work with the business to arrange the placement, even if the business finds the candidate first.  J-1 sponsoring organizations can be for-profit or nonprofit and of course they charge a fee (they have to keep the lights on just like we do), but the fee can be reasonably modest and the fee should include handling the immigration paperwork.  For example, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has an affiliated nonprofit J-1 sponsoring organization to serve employers.  Businesses can choose to become a J-1 sponsor themselves, but this generally is a good option only for large businesses that employ a number of J-1s each year.  So if you like the idea of hiring an international student for temporary employment, check it out - it can be easier than you think.