Farm Labor Organizing Committee v. Su

In 1980, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued regulations to coordinate its enforcement activities relating to farmworkers. 29 C.F.R. § 42. The regulations require that DOL establish and maintain a National Farm Labor Coordinated Enforcement Committee and Regional Farm Labor Coordinated Enforcement Committees that annually develop written coordinated enforcement plans, maintain contact with farm labor groups to exchange information and coordinate activities, and hold annual public meetings. For many years, DOL has failed to fulfill these mandatory obligations.

On March 12, 2024, we filed a lawsuit on behalf of six farmworker organizations alleging that DOL’s failure to comply with its regulations constitutes agency action unlawfully withheld or unreasonably delayed in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. § 706(1). We sought an order compelling DOL to comply with its coordinated enforcement regulations.

On November 26, 2024, the parties finalized a settlement agreement that, once entered as an order of the court, will mandate that DOL take action to comply with its regulation. The settlement requires DOL to –

1. establish and maintain a National Committee consisting of the Deputy Secretary of Labor, the Solicitor of Labor, the Assistant Secretaries for ETA and OSHA, and the Administrator for WHD, that will meet twice annually and guide DOL components on enforcement related to farmworkers;
2. establish a National Committee staff level working group consisting of staff from WHD, ETA (including then National Monitor Advocate), OSHA, and the Office of the Solicitor that will meet at least quarterly;
3. establish Regional Committees headed by the WHD Regional Administrator with representatives from WHD, OSHA, ETA (including the Regional Monitor Advocate), that will meet at least quarterly and maintain contacts with state agencies, farm labor groups, growers, and other interested parties to engage in strategic outreach, and hold an annual public meeting (both virtual and in-person) that will be attended in person by the head of each Regional Committee; and
4. develop annual national coordination plans and regional enforcement strategies concerning farmworker protective statutes.

The agreement includes specific deadlines for establishing the National Committee, Regional Committees, and associated working groups, creating the coordinated enforcement strategies, and holding the annual regional public meetings. DOL is required to provide us with written reports outlining its compliance twice per year for three years, and the Court will retain jurisdiction to enforce the terms of the agreement for three years.