29 U.S.C. § 1803: Applicability of chapter

Summary

Certain people and groups are not covered by this chapter. Owners or immediate family members who do farm labor contracting only for their own family farm or related facility (like a cannery or nursery) are excluded, even if they set up a corporation. Small businesses that meet the Fair Labor Standards Act man‑days agricultural exemption (29 U.S.C. 213(a)(6)(A)) are also excluded. Other exclusions include common carriers that only transport workers, labor unions, charities and nonprofit schools, operators who work only within 25 miles of home for no more than 13 weeks a year, custom combine/hay/shearing operators, certain custom poultry operations where workers aren’t away from home overnight, and people whose main business is not farming but who supply full‑time students or similar nonfarm workers for seed production tasks or for stringing/harvesting shade‑grown tobacco (unless workers stay overnight or under‑18s provide transportation). Employees working only for those exempt persons are excluded too. Subchapter I does not apply to agricultural employers or agricultural associations or their employees.

Title 29, §1803

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(a)The following persons are not subject to this chapter:

(1)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.

(2)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.

(3)Other exemptions.—

(A)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.

(B)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 [29 U.S.C. 141 et seq.]) or as defined under applicable State labor relations law.

(C)Any nonprofit charitable organization or public or private nonprofit educational institution.

(D)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.

(E)Any custom combine, hay harvesting, or sheep shearing operation.

(F)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.

(G)(i)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.

(ii)Any person to the extent he is supplied with students or other individuals for agricultural employment in accordance with clause (i) of this subparagraph by a person who is exempt under such clause.

(H)(i)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.

(I)Any employee of any person described in subparagraphs (A) through (H) when performing farm labor contracting activities exclusively for such person.

(b)Subchapter I of this chapter does not apply to any agricultural employer or agricultural association or to any employee of such an employer or association.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

That Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(3)(B), is act June 23, 1947, ch. 120, 61 Stat. 136, known as the Labor Management Relations Act, 1947, which is classified principally to chapter 7 (§ 141 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 141 of this title and Tables.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective 90 days from Jan. 14, 1983, see section 524 of Pub. L. 97–470, set out as a note under section 1801 of this title.

§1803 Applicability of Chapter