Immigration & Massachusetts News
Governor Healey Urges U.S. Senate to Extend Temporary Protected Status for Haitians
The Governor warns that ending TPS could have devastating consequences for more than 45,000 Haitian TPS holders, Massachusetts employers and essential services.
BOSTON — Governor Maura Healey urged the U.S. Senate to pass legislation extending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians after the measure passed the U.S. House of Representatives.
TPS for Haitians is set to expire on Monday after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld President Donald Trump’s plan to end the policy, which has been in place since 2010.
Governor Healey highlighted the critical role Haitian TPS holders play in Massachusetts’ economy and workforce, particularly in health care, long-term care, transportation, hospitality and construction.
She warned that allowing TPS protections to expire would have significant consequences for families, employers and essential services across Massachusetts. Private employers, public agencies and programs rely on these workers to deliver critical services.
“Haitian TPS holders are essential contributors to our state’s workforce, filling roles that are vital to our economic stability and growth. The sudden loss of their legal status and work authorization would be devastating for our state.”
“I urge Congress to take immediate action to extend TPS protections for Haiti. Forcing Haitian TPS holders to return to a country that has faced repeated natural disasters, economic crisis, widespread violence and political instability goes against the very purpose of TPS, which protects individuals already in the United States who cannot safely return to their home country.”
More Than 45,000 Haitian TPS Holders in Massachusetts
Massachusetts is home to more than 45,000 Haitian TPS holders. They serve in essential roles across the state as nurses, home health aides, certified nursing assistants, technicians, construction workers, hospitality employees and transportation workers.
TPS by the Numbers
- 45,000+ Haitian TPS holders live in Massachusetts.
- $5.9 billion is contributed annually to the U.S. economy by Haitian TPS holders nationwide.
- $29 billion is contributed annually by TPS holders from all designated countries.
- $7.8 billion is paid annually by TPS holders in federal, state and local taxes.
- Up to 2,000 caregivers in Massachusetts senior-care facilities could lose their work authorization.
Health Care and Long-Term Care Could Be Heavily Affected
Governor Healey highlighted the significant workforce impact that ending TPS would have across Massachusetts, including on the state’s health care system.
The Massachusetts Senior Care Association estimates that up to 2,000 employees working in its member facilities could lose their work authorization if TPS protections are not extended. This could further strain an already challenged health care workforce.
Governor Healey’s Continued Advocacy
Governor Healey has been a strong advocate for Haitian TPS holders and the employers who rely on them. In January, she urged then-Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to extend TPS for Haitians, citing the important role TPS holders play in Massachusetts’ workforce, economy and health care system.
Healey has also convened business leaders to discuss the impact of the Trump administration’s immigration policies, including the termination of TPS, on Massachusetts employers and the state economy.
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision allowing the administration to end TPS for Haitians, Governor Healey held a press conference with Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell and community leaders calling for continued protections.
The Healey-Driscoll Administration has also provided guidance and training to hundreds of employers and directed state agencies to support affected workers, employers and communities with information and resources while continuing to urge federal action.
Emergency Assistance Available
The United Way of Massachusetts Bay has activated the United Response Fund to support community organizations providing emergency assistance to Haitian and other families affected by the expiration of Temporary Protected Status.
Statements of Support
Senator Elizabeth Warren
“Haitians are a powerfully important part of our communities—they run small businesses, staff hospitals and are our neighbors. It is wrong for the Trump administration to rip these hardworking, legal immigrants out of our communities and deport them into imminent danger. I cosponsored a bill to reinstate Haiti TPS, and I won’t stop fighting to protect the Haitian community.”
Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (MA-5)
“TPS holders are essential threads in the fabric of our communities. They are teachers, caregivers, small business owners and invaluable leaders. Donald Trump’s vile, anti-immigration agenda is threatening to strip these individuals—45,000 of whom live in our Bay State—of the dignity, opportunity and protection they deserve. We cannot turn our backs on our neighbors. We must act immediately to extend TPS for Haitian immigrants.”
Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-7)
“Haitian TPS holders are essential to our communities and economy, and ending TPS for Haiti would be devastating for Massachusetts and our country. The Senate must do right by our Haitian siblings and pass our bill to extend TPS for Haiti and deliver the critical protections they deserve. I’m grateful to Governor Healey for her partnership in standing up for our neighbors.”
Bob Rivers
Executive Chair and Chair of the Board of Directors, Eastern Bankshares, Inc. and Eastern Bank
“Quite simply, the loss of TPS holders is an economic one for the business community and so many of us—the businesses that employ them and the people of Massachusetts who benefit from their presence. In Massachusetts, they are employed in every economic sector of the state, including serving as nurses’ aides, home health workers, retail employees, warehouse workers, food-service workers, drivers, cleaners, construction workers and small-business employees. Their removal can have major compounded negative effects with the potential for lasting economic damage.”
JD Chesloff
President and CEO, Massachusetts Business Roundtable
“Massachusetts employers depend on a stable workforce to keep our economy strong and competitive. Haitian TPS holders have filled critical roles across industries for years, and we are concerned that an abrupt loss of these experienced workers would increase costs, worsen existing labor shortages and disrupt businesses across the state. We appreciate Governor Healey’s leadership in bringing attention to these impacts.”
Brooke Thomson
President and CEO, Associated Industries of Massachusetts
“Associated Industries of Massachusetts, on behalf of its thousands of member employers across the Commonwealth, strongly supports legislation to extend Temporary Protected Status for people from Haiti on both economic and humanitarian grounds. Haitian TPS holders are valued members of the Massachusetts workforce who have lived here for years, followed the law, received federal work authorization, paid taxes and filled critical jobs in health care, construction, retail, hospitality, transportation and other industries facing persistent workforce shortages.”
Tom O’Brien
CEO, HYM Investment Group, and Co-Chair, Council on Workforce and Economic Security
“A strong workforce is essential to Massachusetts’ economic success, and Haitian TPS holders play an important role in helping businesses across our state thrive. In construction, they are helping build the housing, commercial developments and infrastructure that keep Massachusetts growing. Ending Temporary Protected Status would worsen workforce shortages, drive up costs and make it even harder to deliver the projects our communities need.”
Amy Bianco
Vice President, Federal Affairs and Strategic Initiatives, Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association
“Our provider organizations deeply value compassionate caregivers from all backgrounds, especially as they help fill workforce gaps that would otherwise limit patients’ access to needed services. We are grateful for the strong advocacy of the Healey-Driscoll Administration and federal lawmakers to extend the important role that workers on temporary status play throughout our health care system.”
Tara Gregorio
President and CEO, Massachusetts Senior Care Association
“At a time when demand for vital services for older adults in Massachusetts is rapidly growing, the loss of up to 2,000 experienced Haitian caregivers in our nursing facilities will make it even more difficult to ensure access to the care our state’s seniors rely on. The impact will be felt not only by these workers and their families, but also by the older adults who depend on a stable, reliable long-term care system. We join Governor Healey in urging the Senate to adopt the House-passed legislation extending Haitian Temporary Protected Status.”
Comments (0)
Add a Comment
No comments yet