Posts Categorized: Local Union Resources

Updated materials pertaining to individuals with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and the reinstatement of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) are now available to locals. Resources, including Spanish-language fact sheets and a sample employer letter, are available here and here.

TPS

TPS is a form of immigration relief available to individuals from certain countries where there is ongoing armed conflict, a natural disaster, or other extraordinary conditions that prevent people from returning safely.  

On December 9, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a Federal Register Notice automatically extending the validity of documents related to TPS, including work authorizations, for individuals from El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua, Sudan, Nepal and Honduras through Oct. 4, 2021. This extension complies with a recent decision in the federal Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Other legal challenges to the Trump Administration’s decision to terminate these six countries’ TPS designations are ongoing, and the Biden Administration is expected to extend and expand TPS designations even further. The Biden Administration has proposed legislation that will make green cards and a path to citizenship available to TPS holders.

Workers who re-enrolled during the last designated TPS registration period benefit automatically from the Dec. 9 extension. No worker needs to reapply for this extension.

If a worker’s employment authorization document (EAD) expires before Oct. 4, 2021, the worker should keep a copy of the Dec. 9, 2020 Federal Register Notice. If an employer questions the validity of an EAD, all a worker needs to show is their EAD and a copy of this Federal Register Notice.

DACA

DACA is a U.S. immigration policy that allows some individuals who were brought to the country as children (“Dreamers”) to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and become eligible for a work permit in the U.S.

On his very first day, President Biden issued a memorandum directing DHS and the Attorney General to take all appropriate actions to preserve and fortify DACA. The Biden Administration has proposed legislation that would establish a path to citizenship for DACA recipients.

On Dec. 4, 2020, a New York federal court ordered DHS to restore DACA to its original form. As a result, USCIS is accepting first-time DACA applications, DACA renewal requests, applications for advanced parole (travel) documents, and extending DACA grants and one-year employment authorization documents to two years.

The UFCW was among the plaintiffs in a separate Supreme Court case that overturned the Trump Administration’s termination of DACA in June 2020 as a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.

The UFCW is supporting efforts by the new Congress and the Biden Administration to support immigrant workers and will keep everyone updated.

If you have any questions regarding TPS and DACA, please have your Region Director contact Sarai King at sking@ufcw.org in the International’s Legal Department.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is considering changing its rules about the solicitation of mail ballots before a union election.

On December 2, 2020, in a case called Professional Transportation, Inc., the NLRB accepted an employer’s invitation to reconsider existing rules about the solicitation of mail ballots.  In this case, the employer argued that the union improperly influenced the election by calling and text messaging employees to provide information about how to fill out mail ballots, to remind them to vote, and to offer to collect their ballots.  The employer argued that by offering to collect employees’ ballots, the union interfered with the election.  As a result, the employer argued that the union’s win should be overturned.

Under current law, the NLRB considers it objectionable conduct for an employer or a union to collect mail ballots from employees before a mail ballot election.  If an employer or a union collects mail ballots, the NLRB may require a rerun election. 

Until now, the NLRB has not ruled that it is objectionable conduct if an employer or a union solely offers to collect mail ballots, but does not actually collect the ballots.  By granting review in the Professional Transportation case, the Trump NLRB has signaled that it will take a stricter approach regarding mail ballot solicitation.

To avoid the possibility that the NLRB will overturn the results of an election, it is best for organizers to avoid soliciting ballots or offering to collect employees’ ballots.  However, organizers can still ask workers if they have received their ballots in the mail, provide general guidance or instructions about how to fill out the mail ballot, and remind employees to vote.

If you have any questions, please have your Region Director contact Amanda Jaret at ajaret@ufcw.org.