Hi there, we wanted to make sure you didn’t miss this over the long weekend:

NILC, alongside our partners, have been providing essential support through our deferred action legal clinics to immigrant workers who have experienced or witnessed unsafe working conditions. These clinics have empowered over 200 immigrant workers to apply for deferred action and stand up for their rights.

We also have good news to share: Farmworkers we assisted in partnership with the United Farmer Workers have now received their approval notices and work permits! This process is truly transformative for workers, improving their lives and workplaces.

We invite you to take a moment to read the message below and learn more about this critical work. And, as always, thank you for being a part of our movement. This positive change would not be possible without supporters like you.

— National Immigration Law Center

Hi friend,

Happy Labor Day. At NILC, we believe that the rights of all workers, no matter where they were born, must be respected and that abusive employers must be held accountable. That’s why we fought so hard for deferred action for workers — a process that allows immigrant workers who experience or witness workplace abuse to safely cooperate with labor agency investigations without fear of retaliation based on their immigration status.

Successfully pushing the Biden administration to release this guidance last year was a huge victory and the start of a critical next chapter — ensuring that workers know that this protection is available and have the tools they need to step forward. We got to work right away.

To date, NILC has led five legal clinics, assisting over 200 workers in Illinois, New Jersey, California, and Colorado.

At each clinic, we partner with local organizations and labor unions to guide workers through the application process, providing legal advice, completing immigration forms, translations, and more. We’ve also developed toolkits and materials to support others hosting these clinics, extending our reach even further.

The stories we hear at these clinics are proof of why we needed this policy in the first place. NILC attorneys have heard from workers across the country experiencing severe abuses like wage theft, dangerous working conditions, and interference with unionizing efforts. The injustices go so far as worker deaths — from a fatal chemical leak at a poultry plant in Georgia to a farmworker run over by a truck in California’s Central Valley, where the employer forced others to keep working alongside her dead body.

These clinics go beyond providing legal assistance — they create spaces for workers to connect and organize. Together, over potluck meals, we bring workers together to build community and connection. That’s what worker power is all about.

We can’t continue this vital work without your support, friend. Will you contribute $10 today to help fund our deferred action legal clinics? Your donation will enable us to assist more workers facing severe abuses and ensure they have the opportunity to receive the protections they need.

Thank you for all you do,

Lynn Damiano Pearson 
Immigration Attorney 
National Immigration Law Center