Workforce Solutions Borderplex forum educates employers about untapped workforce potential

An immigration forum educated El Paso employers about untapped workforce potential, with special attention on identifying and connecting with hidden talent pools in the Borderland.

The forum held in late June, hosted by Workforce Solutions Borderplex, featured two panels — the first dedicated to an "informed discussion" on documentation and the second highlighting perspectives of employers in the area.

Cindy Ramos-Davidson, El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce CEO, opened the panel discussions with a report on the economic outlook for small businesses in El Paso. She emphasized the challenges business owners are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a survey of more than 253 small businesses by the El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce earlier this year, almost 77% have been "negatively affected" by Omicron, Ramos-Davidson said. Seventy percent of those surveyed suffered from revenue loss.

Among the most common obstacles was finding and retaining qualified employees in the Borderplex region. The Borderplex region consists of Brewster, Culberson, El Paso, Hudspeth, Jeff Davis and Presidio counties. Over 48% of survey respondents considered recruitment and retention a major hurdle, Ramos-Davidson added.

To address recruitment and retention challenges, the forum encouraged employers to heavily consider an often-overlooked talent pool ― individuals with foreign degrees and highly-skilled individuals with work visas.

"Immigrant entrepreneurs made it big in America," Ramos-Davidson said. "Our small, minority-, women-owned businesses can also."

The forum's first panel stressed the barriers posed by education credentials and employer bias against foreign workers.

"There is an employer bias because many see an immigrant and think they aren't certified," said Liz Moya, Adult Basic Education Instructor at Ysleta Community Learning Center.

In reality, many foreign workers have completed four-year, graduate or professional degrees outside of the U.S., but are unaware of the process to get international credentials evaluated for American certification, Moya said. As a result, they are often overlooked by employers in their degree fields and instead opt for lower-paying, less-specialized employment.

This is a tragedy for both employees and employers alike, the forum argued.

"We're not talking about individuals who don't have talent, who haven't put the work in," said WSB Program Director NiQuisha Washington. "We're talking about individuals who have done the work, gotten the degrees and are looking for a chance to be seen."

The panel also discussed the importance of proper I-9 documentation by employers and the obstacle it often presents when hiring foreign workers.

Form I-9 is used to verify identify and employment authorization of employees, both citizens and non citizens, in the United States. Employers are legally bound to observe which days a foreign employee is authorized to work.

Additionally, employers are required to let workers go if their U.S. work authorization should expire, said labor and employment attorney Adriana Leal.

As many foreign workers experience significant delays when obtaining U.S. work authorization or renewal, employers often "do not want to take a risk" by hiring them, said Anna Hey, immigration attorney and Deputy Executive Director and Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services, Inc.

A recent Temporary Final Rule (TFR) announced by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in May extended the automatic extension period for employment authorization to 540 days, up from 180 days.

The rule allows previously authorized workers to remain working in the U.S. for 540 days following the expiration of their work authorization, so long as they submitted all necessary documentation for renewal prior to the expiration. However, it does little to remove the barriers potential employees face outside of authorization.

The forum's second panel reiterated the value of degree-holding or highly skilled foreign workers in the El Paso workforce and around the country, as well as the potential for strong, sustained U.S.-Mexico cooperation.

"An accent was not a deficit, it was a benefit," said MFI International co-founder Cecelia Levine. "It meant (an employee) could speak two languages, could operate in two countries, in two cultures."

The forum was the first event within a bigger project designed by WSB to minimize the magnitude of overlooked talent in the Borderplex region. For its next step towards this goal, WSB hopes to more directly connect individuals with potential employers.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Workforce Solutions Borderflex talks untapped potential post pandemic