Thank you to the Press Herald for your July 28 editorial, “Our View: Work authorization would help migrants, and the rest of us.”
At Hope Acts, a Portland-based nonprofit serving new asylum seekers, we also want to voice our support for Rep. Chellie Pingree’s legislation to allow asylum seekers to apply for work permits 30 days after applying for asylum, a vast improvement from the current 150-day waiting period.
Hope Acts runs a work permit clinic to assist asylum seekers in completing their work permit applications. In 2022, we completed nearly 800 applications and are on track to complete over 1,000 in 2023. Our work permit program is co-located with Maine Department of Labor/Maine Career Center, so work permit applicants can consult with Career Center staff to learn about job opportunities, training, apprenticeships and more.
I have met thousands of asylum seekers over the years. Not one has said they risked their life and the lives of their families so they could live off the generosity of Mainers. Like every previous generation of immigrants, today’s asylum seekers are anxious to work and provide for themselves and their families.
Streamlining the work authorization process has bipartisan support. I urge Congress to support H.R. 1325, Rep. Pingree’s proposal. Asylum seekers will enter the workforce faster, enabling them to move to financial independence faster than they can today. Maine businesses will benefit from a surge of new employees eager to work. It is truly a win-win opportunity.
Martha Stein
executive director, Hope Acts
Portland
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