Attorneys general from 17 red states are seeking a nationwide injunction to block a Biden administration rule that allegedly violates the National Labor Relations Act by giving guest foreign farmworkers collective-bargaining rights.

The Department of Labor denies the allegation, saying the rule merely gives foreign farmworkers the right to protect wages and working conditions through “concerted activities” and “self-advocacy.”

The AGs accuse the department of hiding “behind linguistic smoke and mirrors.”

“If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a duck,” the motion for a preliminary injunction reads.

The rule is scheduled to take effect Aug. 29. A hearing on the states’ motion is set for Aug. 2 in front of U.S. District Judge Lisa Wood in Georgia.

The 17-state coalition, led by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, includes Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador and AGs for Georgia and Florida, the two states with the most H-2A workers.

The 1935 labor act granted collective-bargaining rights to workers, but excluded farmworkers. While farmworkers can unionize, employers don’t have to recognize the unions. The Labor Department’s latest round of H-2A regulations, announced in April, circumvents the law, the states allege.

Besides breaking federal law, collective-bargaining rights for farmworkers would conflict with some state laws, according to the lawsuit. For example, Kansas prohibits strikes during cattle roundups or harvests.

The Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association and a Georgia farm, Miles Berry Farm, joined the states as plaintiffs.

The rule bars H-2A employers from firing or discriminating against foreign or U.S. farmworkers who join or form a labor organization, promote consumer boycotts or collectively advocate for wages and working conditions.

Union organizers must be allowed to visit on-farm housing and to represent workers facing discipline, according to the rule.

The department claims it has authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act. If farms exploit H-2A workers, wages and working conditions for U.S. workers will suffer, the department argues.

Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su called the rule a significant milestone in President Biden’s efforts to have the most pro-worker administration in history.

In legal briefs, the Labor Department states the rule simply expands existing provisions to protect from retaliation H-2A workers who engage in “self-advocacy” and “self-organization.”

Red states are mischaracterizing the rule and are “flatly wrong” in claiming foreign farmworkers will have collective-bargaining rights, according to the department.

The rule clearly allows H-2A workers to unionize, National Council of Agricultural Employers President and CEO Michael Marsh said. “In our opinion, that rule should never have seen the light of day,” he said.

The 17-state coalition also includes North Carolina, Texas and Arkansas, which all have a high number of H-2A workers. The other states suing are Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Virginia.

Blue states California and Washington have the third- and fourth-most H-2A workers, respectively, and are not part of the lawsuit.