Labor Strikes Hit ICE Detention Where It Counts: Operations

Around 300 detainees at Delaney Hall in Newark refused both food and work on May 22, 2026, exposing a structural vulnerability in immigration detention. ICE facilities depend on detainee labor—paid $1–$3 daily—for food service, laundry, and maintenance. When workers stop, operations seize. That leverage exceeds what hunger strikes alone can achieve, making coordinated labor action a more potent pressure tactic on an agency heavily reliant on detainee compliance.