Immigrant workers protected by a key humanitarian status make significant contributions to New York state’s economy and communities, according to new Cornell research.

Workers from Central America who have temporary protected status (TPS), which the U.S. gives to citizens of countries troubled by war and other crises, play a critical role in New York state’s economy, are highly engaged in civic and political organizations, and overwhelmingly view the U.S. as their home, according to research from the Cornell ILR School’s Worker Institute. Many are also parents of U.S.-born citizens under the age of 18 years old.

“TPS workers already belong in our American society,” said Patricia Campos-Medina ’96, MPA ’97, executive director of the Worker Institute. “They are an intrinsic part of our economy and communities, and our political system ought to be thinking about ways that we can legally acknowledge their contributions via a path to permanency in their lives.”

Campos-Medina is the co-author of “We Are Home: Workers with TPS Belong Here,” a policy report that addresses issues and offers policymakers recommendations to support TPS workers. It is the latest piece of the ongoing Stories of Belonging: TPS Workers project, an exhibit that has traveled to eight cities across the U.S., highlighting present-day experiences of TPS workers. Her co-author is Natalia Navas ’09, extension associate of Labor Leadership Initiatives.

The report finds that the study participants have strong attachments to their New York state communities, proven adherence to American values and pride in their economic contributions to local economies. The findings support previous research demonstrating that long-term TPS holders have developed deep social, economic and civic ties to American society.

Campos-Medina and Navas used a mixed-methods research design, which included analysis of published data on TPS holders, empirical research on temporary workers, and focus groups with 29 Central American TPS holders conducted in Spanish and English. Campos-Medina has conducted extensive research on TPS individuals since 2019.

The United States is home to nearly 1.6 million immigrant workers with TPS, including approximately 300,000 Central Americans who have maintained this legal status for 25 to 30 years, according to the report.

Yet, according to Campos-Medina, the termination of TPS for 300,000 Haitians, 600,000 Venezuelans, and 50,000 Hondurans – and the June 25 U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing the Trump administration to end TPS for Haitian and Syrian nationals – demonstrates the precarity of their status.

Recent federal immigration enforcement policies and efforts to terminate various legal immigration statuses, such as TPS and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), have increased uncertainty for immigrant workers and their families while threatening key sectors of the U.S. economy, she said.

“TPS workers are fully employed, because proving your employment status is a requirement of the program,” Campos-Medina said. “And they are predominantly employed in industries that are important to the U.S. economy, like health care, construction and the logistics industry.”

To delegalize them, she said, is to displace a very productive workforce from those key industries that drive the U.S. economy. “The implications extend beyond the individual,” she said. “It disrupts local economies, increases labor shortages and heightens the vulnerability of immigrant workers to workplace exploitation.”

TPS workers are also tied to the U.S. through their children, Campos-Medina said. More than 279,200 U.S.-born citizens depend on TPS-holder parents for their well-being and stability, according to the Center for American Progress. The threat of deportation and family separation creates lasting social, emotional and economic harm, Campos-Medina said.

For example, Doris Landaverde, a former member and organizer of the Service Employees International Union, has lived in the U.S. for more than 20 years. A native of El Salvador, Landaverde was highlighted in the Stories of Belonging exhibit; she said her biggest concern is what would happen to her two U.S.-citizen daughters if she were delegalized and deported.

“If you remove her, you take away her right to raise her children, and you’re denying American citizens the right to grow up with their parents,” Campos-Medina said.

This is as much a workplace issue as a moral one, she said.

“What is our responsibility as a society to workers who have given their lives, talent and allegiance to America?” Campos-Medina said. “All previous generations of European immigrants could turn their sweat equity into a path to belonging in America. Why not Central Americans, Haitians or Venezuelans?”

The policy paper provides five recommendations to improve the protection and livelihoods of TPS holders.

• The U.S. Congress should enact new legislation establishing a pathway to permanent residence and eventual citizenship for TPS holders.
• To strengthen TPS administration, government agencies should prioritize improved communication, standardized training and shared information systems.
• To develop effective, well-informed legislation, legislators and their staff must remain up to date on the latest trends in immigration and foreign policy that affect their regions.
• Union leadership and membership must expand education and training to better understand the impact of TPS status on workers’ rights.
• TPS holders and their organizations must be included in policymaking to ensure that immigration policies reflect real-life conditions rather than assumptions or incomplete data.

“It’s the obligation of American society – especially workers, union leaders and labor advocates – to recognize that TPS workers have proven their allegiance to the U.S. by contributing to our country’s workforce and economy,” Campos-Medina said. “They have earned a path to belong, a path to permanency and eventual citizenship.”

Julie Greco is director of communications for the ILR School.