Federal court grants preliminary injunction against Labor Dept, blocks temp farm worker unionization

A federal court in Georgia on Monday granted a preliminary injunction that blocked a Labor Department rule that required agricultural employers to allow temporary foreign farm workers to form unions without congressional approval.

The ruling was in response to a lawsuit by the Southeastern Legal Foundation (SLF), which represented a coalition of 17 states, Miles Berry Farm, and the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association. The lawsuit was filed in June.

The federal court ruled that the Labor Department's rule was "unconstitutional" because it conflicted with the National Labor Relations Act, which excluded farmworkers from the right to form unions. 

"The decision recognizes that no matter how much the White House tries, it cannot simply ignore federal law or rewrite laws all on its own," Vice President of Litigation for SLF Braden Boucek said in a statement. "Separation of powers protects everyone, especially America's food producers, from an overreaching executive branch."

The federal court also reminded the Biden administration that federal agencies can work with Congress to create new laws, but "may not become Congress." 

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.