In today’s news and commentary, the United Auto Workers (UAW) joins a lawsuit against the “gold card” visa, the Department of Labor (DOL) seeks funding for identity-verification systems, and Samsung reaches an eleventh-hour agreement with its electronics union. 

On Monday, UAW joined litigation brought by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) to block the Trump administration’s “gold card” visa program, which Meredith reported on in February. Launched in December of 2025, the program allows immigrants to obtain permanent U.S. residency for a $1 million payment, or $2 million if paid by a corporation on behalf of an employee, in an effort to raise revenue. The amended complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, argues that the gold card program unlawfully permits ultra-wealthy immigrants to gain permanent residency ahead of qualified union members. UAW President Shawn Fain stated, “The Gold Card program turns the process into a deeply unfair pay-to-play express lane.” In April 2026, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick admitted under oath before the House Appropriations Subcommittee that only one gold card visa had been fully approved, in stark contrast to his previous claim on the All-In Podcast that he had sold one thousand in a single day for $5 million each. 

On Tuesday, Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling appeared before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee to request an additional $25 million in funding for identity-verification systems in the unemployment-insurance (UI) program. He indicated that DOL aims to crack down on improper payments and wants to make sure “that not a single dollar goes out” that should not. This appropriation is a part of DOL’s total fiscal year 2027 budget request of $2.8 billion in state grants to run the Federal-State Unemployment Insurance system. The request follows findings issued in April by the Government Accountability Office, which were cited at the hearing by the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, showing that DOL’s UI system had an estimated improper payment rate of nearly 15% in fiscal year 2025. The request is also consistent with Acting Secretary Sonderling’s push for DOL participation in the White House’s multi-agency “Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.” The inclusion of UI identity-verification funding is notable given the broader DOL budget request, which would reduce total agency funding by 25% in 2027, as Ryan reported yesterday. 

Finally, yesterday afternoon, Samsung and its electronics labor union reached a last-minute tentative agreement ahead of their May 21st strike deadline, avoiding what had threatened to become a crippling strike at the world’s largest memory chipmaker. As Maya reported on Sunday, Samsung stood to lose between $14 billion and $20.49 billion in profits during the scheduled 18-day strike, with more than 45,000 workers expected to participate. Union leader Choi Seung-ho stated during a televised briefing late Wednesday that union members will vote on the tentative agreement between May 23rd and 28th. Although details of the tentative agreement were not fully public at the time of writing, the Associated Press reported that senior Samsung official Yeo Myounggoo suggested the parties had agreed to expand bonuses beyond the company’s lucrative memory-chip division to less profitable units. On Monday, the Suwon District Court partially granted Samsung’s injunction request, ordering the union to maintain certain staffing levels to prevent damage to facilities and materials during the strike and barring union members from occupying key facilities and offices.