View Item

Title

  • ¡Dale!: How the Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement (DALE) Program Protects Immigrant Workers and Addresses the Need for Immigration Reform

Creator

Published In

Date

  • 2026

Volume

  • 43

Issue

  • 2

Bibliographic Citation

  • Iva Petrov, ¡Dale!: How the Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement (DALE) Program Protects Immigrant Workers and Addresses the Need for Immigration Reform, 43 Wis. Int'l LJ 153 (2026).

DOI

Abstract

  • In the United States, political gridlock has hampered legislative
    efforts to modernize and reform the immigration system. As a result, the
    executive branch has taken a growing role in shaping immigration policy,
    such as by using its authority to exercise prosecutorial discretion to decide
    which undocumented individuals to prioritize for enforcement. This has
    led to programs like Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and
    Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement (DALE), which provide
    temporary relief from deportation to undocumented individuals. Because
    these programs lack congressional or regulatory backing, opponents can
    challenge them in court or repeal them at a moment's notice, effectively
    ending immigration protections for these covered individuals. Despite this
    risk, these programs play an important role in addressing the pressing need
    for immigration reform and provide vital benefits to vulnerable
    individuals. Specifically, the DALE program created in 2023 protects
    immigrant workers from labor abuses and retaliation tied to their
    immigration status. This Comment finds that the executive branch rightly
    created and implemented DALE as a constitutional exercise of power, and
    the program's positive effects on US workplaces and undocumented
    immigrants alike outweigh any potential risks

Collections