In California, migrant workers have waited over three years to hear from a federal court on whether they could proceed with a class-action lawsuit against their employer. If successful, thousands of migrant workers would receive justice for alleged wage theft in the form of backpay. But with judicial vacancies on the rise, justice has been hard to come by for these workers. And due to the transient nature of migrant labor, each passing day makes it more likely that these workers will relocate, become impossible to reach, and lose their chance of receiving justice.
Stories like this one are becoming commonplace, as the increasing number of judicial vacancies (74 at present) has led to the largest backlog of federal criminal and civil cases in American history. Yet, despite the courts’ impact on consequential and timely issues, the process of appointing a new federal judge can be arduous and slow.
The large number of vacancies has wreaked economic havoc on communities. In Texas, which has the most vacancies of any state, a 2015 study by the Perryman Group revealed that if two judicial vacancies were filled, it would likely lead to the creation of over 78,000 jobs and an increase of $11.7 billion in economic activity by 2030. The study found that fully-staffed courts lead to increased personal income, worker earnings, and retail sales “by reducing uncertainties and the time required to resolve business disputes.”
Read more at TalkPoverty.org.
