This post was updated Aug. 8 at 3:39 p.m.
A California Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that a UC policy barring undocumented students from holding on-campus jobs is unlawfully discriminatory.
The lawsuit was originally filed in October 2024 by alumnus Jeffry Umaña Muñoz and lecturer Iliana Perez – who are being represented by attorneys from UCLA Law’s Center for Immigration Law and Policy, among others. It alleged that the policy violated the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, according to court documents. According to the California Code of Regulations, the act states that California employers cannot discriminate against employees or applicants due to immigration status.
The court said it would order the UC to “reconsider its policy based on proper criteria.”
“We conclude that the University’s employment policy facially discriminates based on immigration status,” the court’s fourth division stated in its decision. “In light of applicable state law, the discriminatory policy cannot be justified by the University’s proffered reason.”
Stett Holbrook, a spokesperson for the UC Office of the President, said in an emailed statement that the UC is reviewing the court’s ruling.
“To the extent it’s compliant with the law, the University continues to believe undocumented students deserve the same opportunities as our other students,” he said.
[Related: Petitioners continue seeking employment expansion for undocumented students]
The UC does not currently allow undocumented students to be hired for on-campus jobs or access paid educational opportunities such as work-study financial aid and paid teaching assistant positions.
The UC Board of Regents stated in early 2024 that it would not proceed with a plan to hire undocumented students, despite initially indicating support for the idea. Former UC President Michael Drake said the policy was necessary to uphold federal law and avoid putting the University’s federal grants at risk during a January 2024 regents meeting.
The federal government revoked hundreds of millions of dollars in research grants to UCLA earlier this week, including about 300 grants from the National Science Foundation, 500 from the National Institutes of Health and three from the United States Department of Energy. The cuts followed allegations by the federal government that UCLA engaged in “antisemitism and bias,” and were not connected to undocumented students.
[Related: About 800 NIH, NSF research grants suspended following UCLA federal funding cuts]
Under the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, the federal government prohibits U.S. employers from hiring workers without legal status. However, a legal framework presented by the “Opportunity for All Movement” – which supported the lawsuit – suggests that federal law banning employers from hiring undocumented immigrants does not apply to state entities.
The lawsuit also followed Governor Gavin Newsom’s September 2024 veto of a bill which would have given undocumented students the right to work at California public universities. In his veto message, Newsom said a federal judge should assess the bill’s legality – which Ahilan Arulanantham, a co-director of UCLA’s CILP who served as an attorney on the case, called an “invitation” to bring the issue to court.
[Related: Newsom vetoes bill that would allow undocumented students to hold campus jobs]
“The University abused its discretion when it relied on improper criteria in deciding to continue using its policy,” the court said in its decision. “Accordingly, we will issue a writ of mandate directing the University to reconsider its policy based on proper criteria.”
