In March 2023, Reps. Judy Chu (CA-28) and Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) re-introduced the Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation (POWER) Act (H.R.1828).
Too often, when immigrant workers assert their labor or civil rights or organize for better working conditions, they face threats of immigration enforcement from unscrupulous employers seeking to silence them. This retaliation undercuts workers’ ability to enforce their rights and results in more dangerous workplaces and lower wages for all workers.
Although DHS announced a process to streamline and expedite deferred action requests of immigrant workers involved in labor agency investigations and enforcement in January of this year, this process provides only temporary protection, with no path to permanent status. The POWER Act is the next step to strengthen and broaden protections to immigrant workers to ensure that our labor laws are upheld consistently.
Read MoreBuilding Worker Power Through Deferred Action: A Report on the First Year
Jan 30, 2024 This report commemorates the first anniversary of the Biden administration's new labor-based deferred action policy, highlighting its significant impact on protecting immigrant workers' rights and promoting workplace...
POWER Act Reintroduced
Nov 5, 2015 Empowering U.S. Workers with the POWER Act WASHINGTON — The National Immigration Law Center applauds Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) and her cosponsors for the reintroduction of the Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation...
POWER Act Would Empower U.S. Workers at a Critical Time
May 22, 2018 WASHINGTON — Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) today reintroduced the Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation (POWER) Act, which […]
NILC Statement on the Reintroduction of The POWER Act
Mar 28, 2023 WASHINGTON — Kica Matos, executive vice president of programs and strategy at the National Immigration Law Center, issued the following statement in response to the reintroduction of the Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation...