DHS Announces Process Enhancements for Supporting Labor Enforcement Investigations
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has implemented a streamlined and expedited deferred action request process for noncitizen workers who are victims of, or witnesses to, labor rights violations. This process will protect them from threats of immigration-related retaliation from exploitive employers and enable them to assert their legal rights. Effective immediately, DHS will consider labor and employment agency-related requests for deferred action on a case-by-case basis. Workers can visit DHS.gov for additional information in English and Spanish and to submit requests, thus advancing the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to empowering workers and improving workplace conditions.
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas emphasized that unscrupulous employers who exploit noncitizen workers harm all workers and give businesses that follow the rules an unfair disadvantage. He encouraged all workers to stand up for their rights, report any violations they have experienced or witnessed, and collaborate with labor standards investigations in order to hold these predatory actors accountable. Ultimately, these efforts will safeguard the American labor market, workplace conditions, and the dignity of those who drive our economy.
Workers often fear retaliatory removal or other immigration-related actions by exploitative employers if they report violations of law or cooperate in employment and labor standards investigations. This impedes agencies tasked with enforcing labor and employment laws from fulfilling their mission, allowing employers to commit unlawful and inhumane acts such as nonpayment of wages, imposition of unsafe working conditions, and suppressing workers’ ability to organize and collectively bargain. To address this issue, DHS is now offering discretionary protection on a case-by-case basis to noncitizen victims, streamlining the process for labor and employment agencies to investigate worksite violations and hold abusive employers accountable. This announcement supports the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment's commitment to U.S. workers by improving workplace conditions for all.
DHS will establish a single intake point for deferred action requests from noncitizen workers supported by labor enforcement agencies. This centralized process will enable DHS to quickly review these urgent requests, grant additional security to eligible workers on an individual basis, and bolster the mission of labor agencies. These improvements align with Secretary Mayorkas’ October 2021 memorandum, which instructed DHS offices and agencies to ensure that DHS effectively supports labor agencies in enforcing wage protections, workplace safety, labor rights, and other laws and standards.
DHS has long recognized the need to defer action for noncitizen workers involved in labor agency investigations and/or enforcement actions. To meet this need, USCIS has now established a central intake point for such requests. Upon reviewing the submission for completeness, USCIS will forward requests from noncitizens in removal proceedings or with a final order of removal to ICE for a final determination on a case-by-case basis. All other deferred action requests will be considered by USCIS on a case-by-case basis. Additionally, all related employment authorization applications, including those related to deferred action requests decided by ICE, will be considered by USCIS. To protect workers and reduce potential risks of employer retaliation during labor agency investigations, USCIS is committed to efficiently processing deferred action and related applications for employment authorization.
Requests for deferred action submitted through this centralized process must include a letter (a Statement of Interest) from a federal, state, or local labor agency asking DHS to consider exercising its discretion on behalf of workers employed by companies identified by the agency as having labor disputes related to laws that fall under its jurisdiction. To satisfy individual criteria and facilitate case-by-case determinations, the letter should include other elements detailed in DHS’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
The labor agency enforces and upholds its mission through jurisdictional interests.
The Statement of Interest covers the workers.
DHS's consideration of prosecutorial discretion for these specific workers supports the labor agency's interest.
Deferred action grants typically last two years, but DHS may terminate them at any time. Existing regulations allow individuals granted deferred action to apply for employment authorization if they demonstrate economic necessity. If a labor agency has an ongoing interest in the matter, DHS may grant subsequent deferred action.