Mackinac Island, Michigan -- Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Erik Schubert, a farrier, which is someone who specializes in equine hoof care, examines a horses's hoof at the Mackinac Island Carriage Tours stable. In previous years, this job fell to the company's longtime farrier, who lives 50 miles away in Canada but who was not granted an H-2B visa despite his previous 22 years of service on the island.
American seasonal worker Cecilia Wooley opens up the dining room at the Harbor View Inn. Wooley's hours and job responsibilities have increased as the hotel struggles to find enough workers. She now does some housekeeping, a job previously done by foreign workers under the H-2B visa program.
After a recent change to the H-2B visa program, which offers foreign workers temporary, low-skilled jobs, remote American tourism destinations, like Mackinac Island, are struggling to fill seasonal work positions.
CREDIT: Alyssa Schukar for The New York Times
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