Training Organization, Union Sue Trump Over Job Corps Pause

A coalition of Job Corps training providers filed a federal lawsuit challenging the US Department of Labor’s decision to pause the program for low-income adults, arguing the move will lead to “disastrous” consequences for the 25,000 students who will be displaced by its closure.

A complaint filed Tuesday in the District Court for the Southern District of New York requested that the court block the DOL from winding down the Job Corps program, alleging the effort is illegal and violates mandates set by Congress and the agency’s own regulations.

“Shuttering Job Corps will have disastrous, irreparable consequences, including displacing tens of thousands of vulnerable young people, destroying companies that have long operated Job Corps centers in reliance on the Government’s support for the program, and forcing mass layoffs of workers who support the program,” the complaint said.

The lawsuit brought by the National Job Corps Association, several Job Corps contractors, the Transportation Communications Union/IAM, and one Job Corps student, said the DOL’s move to end the program goes beyond its authority and violates the Administrative Procedure Act and separation of powers.

Job Corps is a nationwide program that provides job training, housing, food, and stipends to low-income people across the country. In exchange, participants receive a high school diploma or equivalent certification. According to the DOL, the program currently has 25,000 participants.

President Donald Trump called for the elimination of the training program as part of his 2026 budget request released in May, criticizing the program as “failed” and citing safety risks to students.

But, according to the lawsuit, the Trump administration had taken steps to dismantle the program starting in March when the DOL halted background checks required for Job Corps applicants.

Then last week, the DOL directed a pause in operations at 99 Job Corps facilities, asking them to cease work by June 30. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer pointing to program costs, graduation rates, and violence at Job Corps facilities as evidence that “the program is no longer achieving the intended outcomes that students deserve.”

The case is: National Job Corps Assoc v. DOL, S.D.N.Y., No. 25-04641, complaint filed on 6/3/25.