In a presentation at the New Mexico Workforce Conference on Thursday, a community-based organization that advocates to protect and expand the rights of immigrants in New Mexico addressed the challenges undocumented people face in the workplace and how it is working to make more equitable opportunities available.
Advocates with Somos Un Pueblo Unido said language barriers, legal obstacles and discrimination are just a few of the many struggles immigrants face in New Mexico’s job market.
Zulema Chavero, a community organizer, said workers without papers also can not access services meant to bring down career barriers, like the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, or “WIOA.”
“New Mexico’s workforce [development] is funded mainly by federal money through WIOA, which is very restrictive and excludes many New Mexicans, specifically immigrant workers,” she said. “Undocumented workers cannot access these programs.”
The organization is working to change that, along with partnering with the state to study whether unemployment benefits can be extended to undocumented workers. Chavero said her team also provides workforce development training.
“Why not give paths for these workers to access quality jobs and, at the same time, help our community with the shortness of workers in key industries that help the global economy in New Mexico?” she asked.
Consul of Mexico in Albuquerque Patricia Pinzón Sánchez said, despite these exclusive programs, undocumented workers still have labor rights.
“So, a person who works is due a salary notwithstanding if that person has or has not documents,” she said. “And for that main reason, and because many employers take advantage of people who do not have documents, it is very important to make that community aware of what their rights are.”
Undocumented workers who believe their employer is discriminating against them, or who feel unsafe at work, can contact the organization to receive help filing claims.
Support from the coverage comes from the Thornburg Foundation.
