Video and Rush Transcript: Congressman Dan Goldman Hosts Press Conference Urging the Biden Administration to Expedite Work Authorization for New Migrants

Congressman Goldman Joined by National Labor and Business Leaders to Tout Economic and Business Benefits of Temporary Protected Status for Expediting Work Authorization 

Follows Goldman’s Bipartisan Letter to the Biden Administration Urging Designation and Redesignation of Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Venezuela 

Goldman: “This is a win-win-win. This is a win for migrants, this is a win for the cities and local governments who are bearing the burden of providing for them, and it is a win for our economy and the business community that is desperate for the labor that these immigrants can provide.” 

Goldman: “And the reason we’re here today is that in addition to doing the right thing by migrants, we’re also doing the right thing by the economy if we confer emergency work authorization to migrants who have come into our country over the last couple of years. And the importance of getting work authorization is also a pathway to successful business development, workforce development, and economic development.” 

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) today held a press conference with labor and business leaders to call on the Biden Administration to redesignate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, and to designate TPS for Guatemala in order to expedite work authorization formigrants and asylum seekers, alleviate the labor shortage, and boost the economy. This press conference comes after Congressman Goldman led a bipartisan letter with business and labor leaders calling on the Biden Administration to use its executive authority to immediately grant work authorization to asylum seekers and new migrants. 

Congressman Goldman was joined by President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Mary Kay, Vice President of Advocacy for FWD.us Alida Garcia, Co-Chair of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition Laura Reiff, Legislative Director for the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Britton Loftin, and National Restaurants Association Vice President of Public Policy Aaron Frazier.  

TPS is a form of humanitarian relief that allows individuals from countries designated by the Secretary of Homeland Security to live and work lawfully in the United States when they cannot return safely to their country of origin due to armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extraordinary conditions. Those who appear to be eligible for TPS are subject to expedited work authorization and a designation of TPS is not subject to judicial review.   

Currently, migrants must wait at least 180 days before they are eligible for work authorization, forcing new arrivals to rely on public services for food, shelter, and healthcare. This extended waiting period also places undue strain on business communities who are in need of additional workers to combat the ongoing labor shortage. 

VIDEO of the event is available here.  

A rush transcript of the Congressman’s remarks is available below: 

I’m very happy to be able to convene this group to address what is really one of the most pressing issues that we’re facing around the country and certainly in my district in New York City.  

We have a terrific group here that's joined us. I just want to introduce everybody before I make some opening remarks and pass it over to them.  

We have Mary Kay Henry, the President of SEIU. 

Alida Garcia, the Vice President for Advocacy for FWD.us, which represents the business community in addressing immigration reform. 

Laura Reiff, Co-Chair of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, which represents members of the healthcare, retail, hospitality, and construction industries. 

Britton Loftin, Legislative Director for IUPAT, who’s here on behalf of the AFL-CIO as well, and Aaron Frazier from the National Restaurants Association.  

I’m very proud to be able to convene this gathering because we are in the middle of a migrant crisis in this country that is really being driven by the absolute, sort of, catastrophic government failures and authoritarian takeover in Central and Latin America, which over the last 10 years or so, has gone from one dictatorship in Venezuela to now three and two additional countries are moving very much toward an authoritarian regime.

There is political persecution, jailing – it is the complete collapse of democratic government and that is causing, of course, a migration wave almost unlike anything that we’ve perhaps seen since our asylum system was created in the aftermath of World War II.

I, like so many, am the descendant of immigrants. My grandmother escaped antisemitism in Russia and came to this country through Ellis Island, settling down with her family. And her brother worked 16 hours a day to put her and her siblings through college to truly chase and achieve the American Dream.  

And that’s why so many migrants are coming to this country, to do just that, to live in the greatest democracy in the world and have the opportunity to pursue that American Dream.

Unfortunately, we’re in a situation right now where there is no real meaningful effort to engage in bipartisan discussions to address comprehensive immigration reform, which is so sorely needed. And because of that there is a 180-day waiting period for after people apply for asylum, which often takes quite a long time, in order to get work authorizations. 

And that is untenable right now as cities like New York welcome with open arms, and very proudly welcome with open arms, tens of thousands of migrants who now are being sheltered, housed, clothed, and fed by the City and it creates a tremendous financial burden, estimated to be about two billion dollars within a short, short period of time, within a year.

And so I've been very active in working with colleagues both in New York as well as a Republican colleague from Florida, Representative Salazar, and we wrote together to the Biden Administration to use its executive authority to designate or redesignate five countries in Central and Latin America for TPS, which is temporary parole that would allow migrants from those countries who enter by a certain date to get emergency work authorizations, and there's also additional executive authority that the administration can use.

We’ve been pushing on all fronts in order to get some financial reimbursement from the federal government as well as push them to use their executive authority in the absence of Congressional action. And we simply need the federal government to do more and that’s why I'm very proud to have written a bipartisan letter because this should be a bipartisan issue.

Now, of course we have so many migrants who are coming here seeking a better life, but without work authorization they cannot work legally. They cannot build a life forthemselves. They cannot become part of the community. They, of course, will not pay taxes to help the revenue streams of our local governments. And they live very much in desperation, hand to mouth, and they need the support of government.

So to provide them with work authorization would allow them to get on their feet, have meaningful, sustainable jobs, build and support their families, move into their own housing, and become a part of our communities and our economy.

But that’s not the only reason we are advocating for this executive action, and part of the reason we are convening this press conference today is because we are also in a desperate labor shortage and we have industry leaders, labor leaders, business leaders – from around the country – who cannot fill jobs that they need to fill.

And the reason we’re here today is that in addition to doing the right thing by the migrants, we’re also doing the right thing by the economy if we confer emergency work authorization to migrants who have come into our country over the last couple of years. And the importance of getting work authorization is also a pathway to successful business development, workforce development, and economic development.

This is a win-win-win. This is a win for the migrants, this is a win for the cities and local governments who are bearing the burden of providing for them, and it is a win for our economy and the business community that is desperate for the labor that these immigrants can provide.

And so, we’re going to continue to work in Congress. I've cosponsored the Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act to address this issue. We are working to reduce the 180-day statutory waiting period. But unfortunately, we don’t have good faith partners in most of the Republican Party right now.

And we will continue to work on them and to try to make every argument we can. But absent congressional action, we need the administration to take this executive action to provide work authorization to those who come in.

That is where we are in Congress, and I want to turn it over now to our great panel here to provide perspective from their position and their seat.

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