Immigration Judges Pledge to Fight Decision Nixing Unionization

A union representing federal immigration judges is already promising to challenge a split Federal Labor Relations Authority ruling that says they are “management officials” who can’t unionize.

The decision, made public Tuesday afternoon, overturned FLRA precedent from 2000 that “failed to recognize the significance” of immigration judges’ decisions and how they influence U.S. policy, FLRA Chairman Colleen Kiko and member James Abbott, both Republicans, wrote for the 2-1 majority.

Immigration judges influence the policy of the U.S. Justice Department’s Executive Office of Immigration Review “by interpreting immigration laws when they apply the law and existing precedent to the unique ...