Business and the Workforce
Immigrants not only bring diverse skills and perspectives to the U.S. workforce, they often fill employment gaps in crucial fields. We advocate for expanded work visas and related programs so our labor force can continue to benefit from immigrant workers and remain competitive in the global economy
If Entrepreneur Doesn’t Get a Visa Renewal, Texans Stand to Lose Jobs — and Chocolate
Stefano Zullian never dreamed of being a chocolatier. But the Venezuelan-born mechanical engineer with an MBA from Emory University now runs Araya Artisan Chocolates, a Houston company with roughly $700,000 in annual sales and 11 employees. “It’s way more complex to start a business in Venezuela, and we started thinking… Read More
Citing U.S. Immigration Policy, Award-Winning Entrepreneur Forced to Move 25 Jobs to South America
It’s no surprise that Colombian-born entrepreneur Alex Torrenegra was named one of the World Economic Forum’s 2015 Young Global Leaders, MIT’s TR35 Colombia Top Innovator of the Year in 2012, and one of Business Insider’s 2013 “Badass Immigrants in Tech.” Fifteen years ago, after… Read More
When a Typo Can Derail a Green Card Application, Reform is Long Overdue
When Darrell Fun was serving in the Air Force JAG Corps in Korea, his fellow airmen would come to the lawyer for advice about marrying people they’d met while serving overseas. At the time, Fun says, “high-school-educated kids could do the paperwork themselves for their own marriage.” But times have… Read More
Report on New Americans in Salt Lake County Highlights Economic Contributions of Immigrants
CONTACT Sarah Doolin, New American Economy, [email protected] Salt Lake Region Launches Task Force to Highlight, Enhance Economic Contributions of Immigrants; New Report Shows Foreign-Born Households Brought Billions to Metro Area GDP in 2014 Salt Lake County, UT – Today, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams,… Read More
Is It Time to Change the H-1B Visa Cap?
On April 1, employers will submit their petitions for H-1B visas for high-skilled temporary workers. The start of the H-1B season, when U.S. employers turn their attention toward hiring foreign talent, provides an opportunity for policymakers to consider whether it is time to change the cap on the… Read More
Why One Professor Is Teaching Her Students About the Need for Immigration Reform
Anna Ochoa O’Leary, assistant professor of Mexican-American Studies at the University of Arizona, teaches her students about how migration is changing American communities. Her syllabi always include a disclaimer that the class will discuss hot-button topics like race and undocumented immigrants. “I’m not blind to the fact that immigration is… Read More
“American Food is Immigrant Food,” Says the Owner of Food Services Business Incubator
Caleb Zigas has worked in restaurants for most of his life, from dishwasher to pastry chef to waiter, and was always struck by the fact that many talented line cooks were immigrants who had limited opportunities to be restaurant owners. “They didn’t have the same access to capital and wealth,”… Read More
CEO of $40 Million Company Says Keeping Undocumented Immigrants in the Shadows Wastes Talent and Stalls Business Growth
Thirteen years ago, Colombian-born entrepreneur Claudia Mirza and her husband, Azam, a native of India, co-founded Akorbi, a language-translation business based in Plano, Texas. Today, Akorbi has grown into a global business-solutions firm, providing localization services and multilingual staffing and marketing to companies such as Google, Aetna, and Blue Cross… Read More
After Surviving Brutal Kidnapping, Colombian Immigrant Becomes Successful Miami Entrepreneur
Cristhian Mancera loved his native Colombia and had planned to stay there forever. But when he was kidnapped at age 28, he lost faith in his country. “I was held for 10 hours and thought I was going to die. I was hit in the head multiple times,” he… Read More
Mexican Immigrant Creates Jobs and Opportunity for American Workers in Greenville
When Mexican native Ruben Montalvo first came to the United States at age 24, he was so sure his visit was temporary that he kept an open return ticket home. As valedictorian from his university, where he had received an engineering degree, he’d been reluctant to leave his cushy… Read More
All gifts are matched dollar for dollar
No one should face the immigration system alone
