The members of UE Locals 208, 808, and 1008 fighting to save their jobs from union-busting layoffs received some powerful help last month. Four Members of Congress and an Orange County Supervisor have sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary and the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to urge them to stop union busting. (Update, September 6: U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has also sent a letter to USCIS.)
In their letter, California Members of Congress J. Luis Correa, Katie Porter, Linda T. Sánchez, Mike Levin, and Orange County Supervisor for District Five Katrina Foleysaid, “A strong, skilled workforce is an effective tool in addressing an enormous backlog in applications resulting from a politicized immigration system. We urge you to reverse the decision to lay off these 400 vital, experienced USCIS workers.”
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) is trying to bust the unions at its service centers with mass layoffs and the removal of work to non-union offices. They are jeopardizing the U.S. immigration system to save a few bucks and silence the voices of organized workers.
“We were dismayed to hear that your agency eliminated hundreds of jobs and displaced skilled workers despite your current need to address said backlogs,” the officeholders said in their letter. “Recent data indicate that the agency's net backlog amounted to an estimated 4,279,000 pending cases as of September 30, 2023. This includes more than 763,400 asylum and withholding of removal cases, 214,000 U- visa petitions, 391,000 family petitions and 342,600 adjustment applications, and 387,700 employment authorizations.”
The congressional letter comes after UE members and allies have sent over 1,100 letters to USCIS demanding that the layoffs be reversed. Send a letter of your own at justiceatuscis.org.
The efforts of UE Locals 208, 808, and 1008 to save union jobs was also featured in Public News Service last month.
