ATU 714 Members to Lose Transit Jobs Due to New Federal Rule Banning Legal Immigrants from Holding CDL Licenses

The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 714 is opposing a new federal rule that will restrict legal immigrants who are legally permitted to work, but who are not yet permanent U.S. residents from applying for and renewing Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs). The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) new rule, which takes effect on March 16, limits so-called “non‑domiciled” CDLs to only drivers who hold H‑2A, H‑2B, or E‑2 visas. There are about 200 non‑domiciled CDL holders in Maine who could lose their licenses under this new rule.  

These individuals are legally in the United States and hold valid work permits, but have not yet obtained permanent residency. Many of them are asylum seekers fleeing war, political persecution and violence in their home countries, but are still stuck in the lengthy, bureaucratic process of obtaining asylum, which can take several years. Nationwide, up to 194,000 drivers, about 97 percent of current non-domiciled CDL holders, will lose eligibility under this new rule over the next five years, according to the FMCSA. The rule allows current non‑domiciled CDL holders to continue driving until their license expires, which will result in a gradual workforce reduction for transit and trucking companies.

ATU 714 expects two of its members to immediately lose their CDLs once the FMCSA rule takes effect and another ten of its members will lose them over the next five years. Local 714 represents about 150 public transit drivers and mechanics who work for Greater Portland Metro bus line, Biddeford Saco Old Orchard Beach Transit, the Community Connector in Bangor and the Regional Transportation Program in Portland. ATU 714 leaders say the new restrictions will make transit company workforce shortages even worse.

“We don’t have the manpower,” said Local 714 President and Business Agent Joe Thomas. “This should be a nonpartisan issue because this not only impacts public transit, but also the trucking industry as a whole. It will have lasting impacts on an industry that already struggles to recruit qualified drivers.”

Thomas said that transit drivers impacted by the rule will still be eligible to take transit jobs that don’t require a CDL, but they will have to take a significant cut in pay and benefits. The Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition (MIRC) noted in comments to the FMCSA last November that the rule will impact several immigrants in Maine who have gone through Portland Adult Education’s successful CDL training program. The popular program trains about twenty new commercial drivers a year.

“These workers, many of whom are immigrants authorized to work in the United States, have helped stabilize local and regional transportation systems by filling vacancies in the public bus system, school bus networks, and municipal transit operations,” wrote Ruben Torres, MIRC’s Advocacy and Policy Manager.

President Donald Trump’s administration has cited fatal crashes caused by non-domiciled drivers as justification for barring them getting CDLs. However, MIRC pointed out that FMCSA focuses on just five accidents caused by noncitizens out of 2,305 fatal crashes involving both citizen and noncitizen commercial drivers of large trucks.