NEW YORK, N.Y. — A group representing nearly all of the 99 Job Corps centers around the country targeted for closure has filed suit against U.S. Department of Labor and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, seeking to stop the shutdown.

The department announced May 29 that it would “pause” operations at all Job Corps centers operated by independent contractors, effectively eliminating the programs. That includes the Carl D. Perkins Job Corps Center in Prestonsburg.

But on Wednesday, the National Job Corps Association filed a complaint in Manhattan federal court saying that the shutdown is not only illegal, but “fundamentally irrational.”

The complaint says that the Job Corps program is mandated by federal law, and that Congress has created strict guidelines for how centers can be closed. The NJCA says the May 29 “pause” is in violation of all of those legal requirements. Furthermore, the complaint says the sudden shutdown will cause “severe and irreversible injuries” to students, operators, employees and communities.

The lawsuit seeks a preliminary injunction blocking the closures, as well as a declaration that the shutdowns are illegal without Congressional authorization.

A full copy of the NJCA’s complaint is attached below: