Some of Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley’s Latino coworkers carry their passports everywhere they go, as fears escalate over federal immigration enforcement.
“They’re so worried about really having their lives disrupted in ways that are pretty traumatic for themselves and their families, even though they’re American citizens with U.S. passports,” Paley said Thursday.
Speaking at an economic forum hosted by the Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Paley reflected on how his perspective on immigrant rights shifted after joining the Healey administration.
“I thought of this immigrant crisis as a social justice issue primarily before I came into this job,” Paley said. “I don’t think I appreciated how extraordinarily concerning this also is from an economic perspective. I would say given how horrible the social justice side is of it, it almost feels insensitive to talk about the economic perspective of it. But I am the secretary of economic development, so it’s hard to ignore, and it’s a critical part of our economy in ways that go beyond what I understood.”
Bay Staters with legal status are afraid to go to work, while others are scared to seek medical care or attend school amid the possibility of encountering Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, said Jim Cantwell, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey’s state director.
“All of these impacts weaken our Massachusetts economy and society,” Cantwell said.
A former state representative, Cantwell also lamented the Trump administration’s decision last week to halt visa applications for 75 countries.
“This ban will separate countless families in Massachusetts from their loved ones. It’ll hurt universities and businesses,” Cantwell said. “It’s an economic, moral and security failure.”
Explaining the policy change, the U.S. Department of State said President Donald Trump “has made clear that immigrants must be financially self-sufficient and not be a financial burden to Americans.” The department said it is reviewing all policies, regulations and guidance with the aim of ensuring that “immigrants from these high-risk countries do not utilize welfare in the United States or become a public charge.”
Since 1990, 80% of the commonwealth’s labor force growth has been fueled by foreign-born labor, said Mark Melnik, director of economic and public policy research at the UMass Donahue Institute. Aiming to dispel stereotypes, Melnik said immigrants are not just working low-wage jobs, such as cleaning hospitals or working in the back of restaurants.
“Importantly, our immigrant population in Massachusetts is very bimodal in its educational distribution,” Melnik said. “The percentage of immigrants in Massachusetts with a graduate degree is actually higher than the percentage of native-born with a graduate degree. So yes, we have a lot of immigrants with limited educational attainment over here, but we have a ton of immigrants down here who are contributing in the STEM fields.”
The country’s economy is poised to undergo a major transformation between the rise of AI replacing workers and a pause on immigration, said Pedro Arce, M&T Bank’s senior vice president.
“These are structural changes,” Arce said. “These are not like, ‘Oh, it’s only going to be for four years.’ These are structural changes that could last a very, very long time.”
But AI cannot replace direct care workers, pointed out Lisa Gurgone, CEO of Mystic Valley Elder Care Services. About 40% of the state’s direct care workers are immigrants — some of whom provide home care services that allow older adults to remain in their communities and avoid costlier nursing home care.
Gurgone said she was “pretty shocked” to learn in a meeting recently that her Latina employees carry their passports wherever they go.
“They’re very concerned, so we are trying to educate them, share information with them,” Gurgone said. She added, “If you talk to a nursing home with Haitian TPS, there are so many workers in nursing homes that are Haitian, and again, they’re very concerned for themselves, their families.”
The federal government is ending the Temporary Protected Status designation for Haitian immigrants on Feb. 3. The expiration could put more than 350,000 people nationwide at risk of deportation, including about 4,700 individuals in Massachusetts, according to Markey’s office.
Paley said Massachusetts is home to about 2,000 Haitian health care workers who are under TPS protection. Compounding that pressure, Paley pointed out the state already has a health care workforce shortage.
The secretary said that businesses must prepare for the possibility of ICE showing up, share employee rights and think through “contingency plans” if there are worker disruptions.
“I don’t think people should be taking for granted that it’s just going to be OK,” Paley said.
He added, “And we need to show incredible empathy right now for your workforce, for what they’re going through because you can be here entirely legally, felt comfortable here your entire life, never really worry, and all of a sudden, all the context has changed.”
Alison Kuznitz is a reporter for State House News Service and State Affairs Pro Massachusetts. Reach her at akuznitz@stateaffairs.com.
