The Trump Organization is bringing in more foreign workers to staff its Virginia winery, while also slashing hourly wages to the lowest rate offered in years.
The move comes just weeks after President Donald Trump’s own administration changed federal rules to lower minimum pay for temporary agricultural workers.
According to Department of Labor records reviewed by Forbes, the Trump Organization filed paperwork in December to hire 36 H-2A visa workers to fill seasonal jobs at Trump Winery in Virginia.
These jobs will run from February through October 2026 and pay $13.90 per hour.
That’s nearly $2 less than what the winery paid in 2025, and below the rate it has offered since at least 2021.
Critics Say Workers Will Lose Billions
The timing of the application is significant. In October 2025, the Department of Labor implemented a rule that revised how wages are calculated for some temporary farm jobs.
The new formula reduced the “adverse effect wage rate,” which is meant to prevent employers from undercutting U.S. workers’ pay.
Critics argue that this change will have a massive impact on wages in the agriculture sector.
The Economic Policy Institute estimates the new policy could reduce total pay for U.S. farmworkers by around $3 billion per year, or about 9% of total wages.
In November, the United Farm Workers union and 18 individual workers sued the Labor Department, saying the rule violates federal law by failing to protect domestic wages and working conditions.
Trump Business Benefits from Policy Shift
Meanwhile, Trump’s business is taking advantage of the lower pay thresholds.
The Trump Organization stated in its filing that it could not find enough U.S. workers and that hiring foreign labor “will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.”
Workers who previously held jobs at the winery will reportedly be paid $16.16 per hour if they return in 2026.
But new hires will earn the reduced rate of $13.90.
Mar-a-Lago and Golf Clubs Also Rely on Foreign Workers
The winery isn’t the only Trump property seeking foreign labor.
In total, the Trump Organization requested at least 184 visa workers in 2025 for Mar-a-Lago in Florida, two golf clubs, and the Virginia winery.
That’s the highest number of visa applications ever submitted by the company in a single year, according to Forbes, and a sharp jump from 121 requests in 2021.
This brings the total number of foreign workers Trump’s business has sought since 2008 to over 2,000.
During his two terms in office, Trump’s businesses have filed requests for 566 foreign laborers, mostly through the H-2A and H-2B visa programs for agricultural and hospitality jobs.
Crackdown on Legal Immigration for Others
The increase comes as the Trump administration continues to tighten legal immigration overall.
In 2025, it introduced a $100,000 fee for many H-1B visas, which are used for highly skilled workers like engineers and accountants.
There have also been new restrictions on student visas, journalists, and added scrutiny of the 55 million people who already hold U.S. visas.
Trump has avoided directly criticizing foreign labor in agriculture, even though his broader political message centers on protecting American jobs.
After facing criticism from some Republicans about using visa workers, he defended the practice during a Fox News interview in 2025, saying, “You can’t just say a country is coming in, going to invest $10 billion to build a plant, and going to take people off an unemployment line who haven’t worked in five years, and they’re going to start making their missiles. It doesn’t work that well.”
Trump Retains Business Control While in Office
While the Trump Organization did not respond to requests for comment, financial disclosures show President Trump retains full control of his businesses while in office through the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust.
He is the sole beneficiary of the trust, and his son Donald Trump Jr. serves as trustee.
Forbes estimates Trump’s net worth is now around $6.7 billion, up $2.4 billion since his reelection in November 2024.
Much of that increase is reportedly from cryptocurrency investments, not real estate.
Trump Organization’s Foreign Hiring Surged in 2025
According to The Guardian, 2025 marked the fastest pace at which the Trump Organization has sought to hire foreign workers.
It noted that this was the fifth time in a decade that the company requested over 100 visa workers for seasonal roles at Mar-a-Lago alone.
The report also highlighted a contradiction between Trump’s tough immigration policies and his own business practices.
While his administration tightened rules and added costly barriers for others using legal work visas, his family business expanded its reliance on foreign labor.
More Visa Filings Expected in 2026
The Trump Organization is also expected to request additional H-2B visa workers in early 2026 for seasonal roles at Trump National Golf Club in New Jersey, continuing its long-running pattern of staffing resorts and clubs with temporary foreign labor.
As the lawsuit challenging the wage rule moves forward and the Labor Department decides whether to finalize it, the situation underscores a growing tension between Trump’s political rhetoric and the labor practices of his private businesses.