US employers resume fight for more H-2B visas for foreign workers

Businesses say crash of government web portal for permit applications underscores need to raise visa caps

Employers who rely on seasonal foreign-worker permits are renewing their fight to lift limits on temporary H-2B visas, saying computer problems this year that thwarted many applications highlighted the need to raise the cap.

The Labor Department website used by U.S. businesses to apply for this spring’s round of H-2B visas crashed after a scramble by employers chasing 33,000 available permits.

The Jan. 1 system meltdown, in the moments thousands of employers were applying for their permits, stemmed from high demand and a move to make the process first-come, first-served.

While the Labor Department said Tuesday it would switch to a randomized process