In today’s news and commentary, the First Circuit will hear oral arguments on the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) revocation of parole grants for thousands of migrants; United Airlines’ flight attendants vote against a new labor contract; and the AFL-CIO files a complaint against a Trump Administration Executive Order that strips the collective bargaining rights of the vast majority of federal workers. 

Bloomberg Law reports that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is set to hear oral arguments on DHS’s revocation of parole grants for thousands of immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. Previously, the Biden Administration had used its parole authority to admit immigrants without lawful status because it served “a humanitarian need or the public interest.” In a brief, the government argues that parole terminations are shielded from judicial review and points to 8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(5)(A), which states that the Secretary of Homeland Security may terminate parole grants “when the purposes of such parole shall, in the opinion of the Secretary of Homeland Security, have been served.” The Immigration Reform Law Institute also filed an amicus brief, supporting DHS’s argument that parole terminations are exempt from judicial review. 

Meanwhile, flight attendants for United Airlines voted against a new labor contract that would have provided an immediate 26% raise and other quality-of-life improvement measures. The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, the union representing the flight attendants, had reached the tentative agreement with United Airlines in May, but of the 92% of eligible voters who cast ballots on the agreement, 71% voted against it. In a statement by the president of the union, Ken Diaz, he stated that the agreement did not go far enough in addressing the “years of sacrifice and hard work” that the flight attendants put forth over the years in making the airline a success. The union will now speak with members regarding the improvements they seek in a contract. 

Lastly, the AFL-CIO filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia seeking declaratory and injunctive relief over the Trump Administration’s Executive Order No. 14251, Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Programs, which seeks to strip the collective bargaining rights of the vast majority of federal workers. In its complaint, the AFL-CIO contends that the Executive Order is unconstitutional and violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) because it (1) violates the Constitution’s separation of powers; and (2) the action is “arbitrary and capricious,” noting that certain unions, specifically police and firefighter unions, are not subject to the Executive Order. The complaint also notes that this lawsuit adds to several other lawsuits already challenging the Executive Order.