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Content Last Revised: 8/12/83
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CFR  

Code of Federal Regulations Pertaining to ESA

Title 29  

Labor

 

Chapter V  

Wage and Hour Division, Department of Labor

 

 

Part 500  

Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection

 

 

 

Subpart A  

General Provisions


29 CFR 500.30 - Persons not subject to the Act.

  • Section Number: 500.30
  • Section Name: Persons not subject to the Act.

    (a) Family business exemption. Any individual who engages in a farm 
labor contracting activity on behalf of a farm, processing 
establishment, seed conditioning establishment, cannery, gin, packing 
shed, or nursery, which is owned or operated exclusively by such 
individual or an immediate family member of such individual, if such 
activities are performed only for such operation and exclusively by such 
individual or an immediate family member, but without regard to whether 
such individual has incorporated or otherwise organized for business 
purposes.
    (b) Small business exemption. Any person, other than a farm labor 
contractor, for whom the man-days exemption for agricultural labor 
provided under section 13(a)(6)(A) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 
1938 (29 U.S.C. 213(a)(6)(A)) is applicable. That exemption applies to 
an agricultural employer who did not, during any calendar quarter of the 
preceding calendar year, use more man-days of agricultural labor than 
the limit specified under that statute.
    (1) Currently the limit for exemption is 500 man-days.
    (2) A man-day means any day during which an employee performs 
agricultural labor for not less than one (1)
hour. Agricultural labor performed by an employer's parent, spouse, 
child, or other member of his immediate family, i.e., step-children, 
foster children, step-parents and foster parents, brothers, and sisters 
is not counted as man-days.
    (3) The man-days of agricultural labor rendered in a joint 
employment relationship are counted toward the man-days of such labor of 
each employer for purposes of the man-day test of this exemption.
    (c) Common carriers. Any common carrier which would be a farm labor 
contractor solely because the carrier is engaged in the farm labor 
contracting activity of transporting any migrant or seasonal 
agricultural worker. A ``common carrier'' by motor vehicle is one which 
holds itself out to the general public to engage in transportation of 
passengers for hire, whether over regular or irregular routes, and which 
holds a valid certificate of authorization for such purposes from an 
appropriate local, State or Federal agency.
    (d) Labor organizations. Any labor organization, as defined in 
section 2(5) of the Labor Management Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 152(5)) 
(without regard to the exclusion of agricultural employees in that Act) 
or as defined under applicable State labor relations law.
    (e) Nonprofit charitable organizations. Any nonprofit charitable 
organization or public or private nonprofit educational institution.
    (f) Local short-term contracting activity. Any person who engages in 
any farm labor contracting activity solely within a twenty-five mile 
intrastate radius of such person's permanent place of residence and for 
not more than thirteen weeks per year.
    (1) Twenty-five mile intrastate radius as used in section 4(a)(3)(D) 
of the Act means that engagement in a farm labor contracting activity 
may not go beyond a twenty-five mile intrastate geographical radius. 
Once this limit is transcended, the exemption no longer applies and the 
person becomes subject to the requirements of the Act. If, for example, 
a person or his employee solicits workers from a distance greater than 
twenty-five miles from his permanent residence or from across a State 
line, then the person has engaged in a named activity outside of the 
permitted scope of the exemption, and is subject to the requirements of 
the Act. A person who uses lines of communication (such as U.S. Mail, 
telephone, or advertising) to recruit, solicit, hire, or furnish workers 
over a distance greater than twenty-five miles from his permanent 
residence or from across a State line for agricultural employment is 
also engaged in a named activity beyond the specified limit of the 
exemption and is subject to the Act. In the case of a corporation its 
permanent place of residence for these purposes shall be a single 
designated location.
    (2) For not more than thirteen weeks per year as used in section 
4(a)(3)(D) of the Act means that farm labor contracting activities may 
not be engaged in for more than thirteen weeks in a year. This does not 
mean, however,

that persons who engage in intrastate and short-range farm labor 
contracting activities are exempt for the first thirteen weeks of their 
farm labor contracting activities each year. The number of weeks of 
contracting activity during the prior year is also a factor. When the 
limit of weeks for the exemption is exceeded in a calendar year, the 
person is subject immediately to the Act and is also presumed subject to 
the Act in the next calendar year, unless it can be shown that the tests 
of section 4(a)(3)(D) are met.
    (g) Custom combine. Any custom combine, hay harvesting, or sheep 
shearing operation. Custom combine, hay harvesting, and sheep shearing 
operation means the agricultural services and activities involved in 
combining grain, harvesting hay and shearing sheep which are provided to 
a farmer on a contract basis by a person who provides the necessary 
equipment and labor and who specializes on providing such services and 
activities.
    (h) Custom poultry operations. Any custom poultry harvesting, 
breeding, debeaking, desexing, or health service operation, provided the 
employees of the operation are not regularly required to be away from 
their permanent place of residence other than during their normal 
working hours.
    (i) Seed production exemption. (1) Any person whose principal 
occupation or
business is not agricultural employment, when supplying full-time 
students or other individuals whose principal occupation is not 
agricultural employment to detassel, rogue, or otherwise engage in the 
production of seed and to engage in related and incidental agricultural 
employment, unless such full-time students or other individuals are 
required to be away from their permanent place of residence overnight or 
there are individuals under eighteen years of age who are providing 
transportation on behalf of such person.
    (2) Any person to the extent he is supplied with students or other 
individuals for agricultural employment in accordance with paragraph 
(i)(1) of this section by a person who is exempt thereunder.
    (j) Shade grown tobacco. (1) Any person whose principal occupation 
or business is not agricultural employment, when supplying full-time 
students or other individuals whose principal occupation is not 
agricultural employment to string or harvest shade grown tobacco and to 
engage in related and incidental agricultural employment, unless there 
are individuals under eighteen years of age who are providing 
transportation on behalf of such person.
    (2) Any person to the extent he is supplied with students or other 
individuals for agricultural employment is accordance with paragraph 
(j)(1) of this section by a person who is exempt thereunder.
    (k) Employees of exempt employers. Any employee of any person 
described in paragraphs (c) through (j) of this section when performing 
farm labor contracting activities within the scope of such exemptions 
and exclusively for such person.
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