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left-of-center2012

(34,195 posts) Sat Jun 23, 2018, 02:05 PM Jun 2018

Jobs go unfilled in San Diego area as refugee numbers plummet

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-refugees-plummet-20180623-story.html

Since President Trump initiated the first (Muslim) travel ban, refugee arrivals plummeted across the country. So far in fiscal 2018, the U.S. has resettled 14,331 refugees, less than a third of the 45,000 ceiling set by Trump.

Employers in industries like hospitality, manufacturing and meatpacking are facing labor shortages without new arrivals eager for work experience that doesn’t require English-language fluency, the International Rescue Committee, a resettlement agency with offices in the San Diego area, report says.

Mikey Knab, chair of Business for Good San Diego said refugees are important to small businesses in San Diego ...
“There’s a lot of competition for labor, and it’s hard to find good help,” Knab said. “The refugee community has been a place where we have found good employees who are committed and contribute in a positive way.”

Refugees need help when they first arrive, he said, but they more than make up for it later as their ability to contribute economically increases.
About a third of San Diego County’s entrepreneurs are immigrants, according to a study by New American Economy for the Welcoming San Diego initiative, which makes them more than 22% more likely to start businesses than U.S.-born workers. Refugees, Knab said, are the most likely of any immigrant group to open their own businesses and become entrepreneurs.