Help in your state
Every state has a State Monitor Advocate (SMA). Their job is to protect farmworkers' rights and help you with complaints.
What does the State Monitor Advocate (SMA) do?
- Takes complaints about your job: pay, hours, housing, transportation, safety or unfair treatment.
- Helps you understand your rights and connects you with the right agency.
- Can connect you with the state's outreach staff, who visit farmworkers in their area.
- You can ask to speak in Spanish and ask how to protect your identity.
Find your state
How to reach them
- Call or email. If no one answers, leave a message with your name, a safe number and the best time to call.
- Have ready: the farm's name, the city or county, and your contract if you have it.
- Keep photos of your pay stubs, hours and housing.
What to say
"Hello, I'm an H-2A farmworker. I work at [farm name] in [county/city]. I need help with [pay / hours / housing / treatment]. Can you help me in Spanish?"
Are you an outreach worker? Add your contact information for your state.
We review every request before publishing it. We only publish what you authorize.
Are you in danger right now?
- Emergency: call 911.
- National Human Trafficking Hotline (Spanish available, 24 hours, confidential): 1-888-373-7888 or text 233733.
- Problems with pay, hours or working conditions: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 (Spanish available).
It is illegal for your employer to punish or fire you for asking for help or filing a complaint.
From the U.S. Department of Labor's Monitor Advocate National Directory, updated . Contacts change; if a number doesn't work, check the official list.