By Ana Gomez Salcido
Business owners can now help employees who are legal permanent residents with the citizenship process through the National Immigration Forum’s New American Workforce program.
New American Workforce seeks to work with businesses to assist their eligible immigrant employees with the citizenship process so they become full participants in the workplace, community, and economy.
“We are encouraging the business community to offer citizenship services to their employees right at the worksite – enabling their final step in their American dream,” said National Immigration Forum Executive Director Ali Noorani.
Local business and government partners met at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce to discuss how the New American Workforce program works and the success of participant businesses this past Wednesday, September 14.
“As a network of businesses in the San Diego region, we are glad to partner with a project like New American Workforce that makes worksite citizenship services available to the 204,000 eligible legal permanent residents in our region,” said Jerry Sanders, San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Officer. “We have a lot of positions that are actually filled by legal residents, and they bring another skilled set so it’s very important to the business community to bring everybody to the workforce.”
Legal immigrants are skilled in different types of jobs in the local workforce from the food and service industries to the technological industry.
San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer joined the San Diego Chamber of Commerce, the National Immigration Forum and leaders from local businesses to provide a briefing on the economic contributions of immigrants to the region and to highlight local immigrant integration efforts.
These leaders discussed the opportunity of offering citizenship services at the worksite through New American Workforce, joining over 50 businesses in the area already participating.
“I celebrate all the legal permanent residents of San Diego and applaud those participating in the citizenship process, taking that final step in their American dream,” Faulconer said. “Programs like New American Workforce bolster the business community and our residents.”
The program facilitates citizenship assistance through a two-step process. This is offered at the worksite and often during employee breaks or before andafter work hours.
The employees who participate in the program have information and application workshops available to them, as well as English language and civics instruction.
“New American Workforce has been very successful and more and more people are asking how to participate,” said Alicia Valadez, Northgate Gonzalez Markets owner. “We started inviting the employees through an email blast and also by posting signs in the staff lounge.”
Valadez mentioned there are 150 employees from Northgate Gonzalez Markets that participate in the program including Human Resources Manager Marina Alcala.
“Participating in New American Workforce allowed me to have security because I didn’t have to keep reapplying for my green card,” Alcala said. “I’m excited to now have more opportunities for myself and for my family.”
For more information, business owners can visit www.newamericanworkforce.org or send an email to jmurray@immigrationforum.org.