If you go to just about any summer resort town, from the ocean towns in Maine to Mackinac Island in Michigan or to the working dude ranches in Montana, odds are you will see workers from Eastern Europe and Central America working in bars, restaurants, hotels, camps, and the like, providing services for American families.

Most likely, these are seasonal workers who come to the United States on what are called H-2B visas. The workers typically come for three to nine months on these temporary work permits and then go back home for the rest of the year, often returning in the following years.

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The Trump administration has been favorable to the program in part because President Donald Trump has firsthand knowledge of the practicality of the visa system. Some of his properties, including Mar-a-Lago in Florida and the Bedminster club in New Jersey, might not be able to operate fully without them. 

The White House recently announced that it will be allowing an additional 19,000 supplemental visas because these workers will boost the U.S. economy. With the economy improving under Trump, the demand for these seasonal work permits remains high. There are now about 130,000 of these workers each year, but demand is so high that last year the federal government approved about 240,000 of these visas.

The unemployment rate went down, not up. These are not positions where lower-wage immigrants are taking jobs from American workers. The workers are well paid, and they are in positions that businesses say they can’t find anyone to fill.

It’s important to clarify that H-2B visas are not a “path to citizenship” or part of a program to increase the number of immigrants living permanently in the U.S.

The program is a partial solution to the illegal immigration problem. Now that Trump and his border czar Tom Homan have reduced illegal border crossings by an astounding 92%, we can accept the worker immigrants who come into the country in an orderly and legal way. There is no family “chain migration” because the workers come on their own, not with their families. These immigrants work, pay taxes, fill niches in the economy, and then mostly go back to their home countries after a few months of their labor services here.

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Survey data show that most voters support the H-2B program. Late last year, my group, Unleash Prosperity, sponsored a comprehensive poll on how Trump voters viewed a temporary, seasonal guest worker program. The results were stunningly supportive. Seven of 10 Trump voters supported an orderly program like this, and more than half supported increasing the visas as needed.

The seasonal worker visa program is a win-win for employers, immigrant workers, affected local communities, and the U.S. economy. Trump should expand it to meet the growing demand. 

Stephen Moore is a co-founder of Unleash Prosperity. His latest book, co-authored with Arthur Laffer, is The Trump Economic Miracle. He has served as a senior economic adviser to President Donald Trump.