Former Logan Airport workers who lost jobs over immigration status sue Trump administration

Four former Logan Airport employees and their union, Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, sued the Trump administration Friday.

The lawsuit is in response to U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s revocation of airport workers’ “customs seal” — a type of security clearance they need to access certain parts of the airport and to work as cabin cleaners and passenger service agents. The union says at least 80 immigrants with valid work authorization have been affected at Logan, along with hundreds more nationwide.

“It's part of the cruel and racist effort to purge immigrants from the U.S. workforce, disappear them from our communities and scapegoat them for our nation's problems,” said Kevin Brown, executive vice president of the union local.

A Customs and Border Protection spokesperson in a statement said the agency's “guidance ensures that only individuals lawfully present in the United States are given official government credentials” and they “stand by their responsibility to uphold national security.”

According to the complaint, all four Logan workers have valid work authorization and passed prior background checks. Three were granted temporary protected status, which allows people from countries in turmoil to live and work in the U.S. The Trump administration has been fighting in court to end TPS status for many people.

A representative from MassPort, which operates Logan, said this is a federal matter and referred questions to CBP.

Raquel Molina, a 65-year-old Boston resident who’s among the plaintiffs, worked at Logan for 27 years before her seal was revoked last year.

“Workers like Raquel are not threats to public safety, but rather the reason we're safe at our airports,” said Marisa Houlahan, a law student in the Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic at Yale Law School, which is representing the former employees and SEIU.

Saint Paul Paul, another individual plaintiff, lives in Dorchester with his five children. He came to the U.S. from Haiti in 2018. He has temporary protected status and has applied for asylum.

He was an airline cabin cleaner at Logan for three years. He said he loved how active the job was, the four-day a week schedule and the pay, along with getting to work with other Haitians. But in June, Paul showed up to Logan and his badge suddenly didn’t work.

“I didn’t understand what was happening,” Paul said in Haitian Creole through an interpreter. “I thought maybe there was some error, but I knew if my badge didn’t work, I couldn't work.”

Some time later, Paul received a letter from CBP, which he shared with WBUR, stating he didn’t meet "authorized residency requirements.” The letter continued that this “poses an unacceptable risk to public health, interest or safety, national security, aviation safety, the revenue, or the security of the area.”

He appealed and was denied.

“I think this language is an excuse,” Paul said. “So the government can discriminate against immigrants like me.”

Among local lawmakers at a press conference Friday, Boston City Councilor at-large Ruthzee Louijeune told Paul that what happened to him was unfair and unjust.

“ You are the backbone of this country,” Louijeune said.  The administration's revocation “is not about security. It is about depriving these workers of their livelihoods. It is about xenophobia, it's about discrimination, and it is about racism.”

Lawyers from the Yale law clinic said it’s now up to the government to respond to the suit. They expect an update in 30 to 60 days.

Meanwhile, Paul found another job working at a restaurant, but he said the pay, the hours and the benefits are worse. He joined the lawsuit to fight for his job back and to protect other immigrants.

“I don’t want anyone else in this situation,” Paul said.

This report was updated to include a statement from the Trump administration that was not immediately available when the story was first published.