Page 11 - Work Force April 2026

Bravo and his wife Mina Bravo and his wife Mina (photo provided) (photo provided)
A broken system: Immigrants are vital to economy
The Trump administration’s mass deportation
The Brookings Institute estimates between $40
$22.6 billion to Social Security and $5.7 billion to
agenda is wreaking havoc on families,
and $60 billion in consumer spending was lost to
Medicare, benefits many immigrant workers are
communities and the economy.
deportations in 2025.
unable to access but help keep afloat.
The United States is approaching zero labor-
A shrinking workforce lessens the economic
The administration claims the agenda is to
force-growth due to an aging population and
support that immigrants provide to federal, state
deport criminals, but the Cato Institute obtained
falling fertility. Immigration is the anecdote to
and local budgets through taxes paid. A 2024
internal Homeland Security data showing that 73%
demographic disaster.
American Immigration Council Report estimates
of those detained by ICE between October 1 and
Immigrants are vital members of our workforce
that undocumented immigrant households paid
November 15 had no criminal convictions.
and unions. This anti-worker agenda is crippling
more than $70 billion in federal, state and local
Yet the path to citizenship is a long and
industries that rely heavily on immigrant labor.
taxes in 2022.
expensive bureaucratic maze that is not always
Many of the 675,000 immigrants deported last year
While immigrants are portrayed as a drain
clear or fair.
worked in manufacturing, construction, hospitality
on resources, they contribute substantially to
On these pages are one CSEA member’s story.
and agriculture.
the social safety net. In 2016, immigrants paid
A worker’s story
LAKE PLACID — For asylum
seekers like CSEA Olympic Regional
Development Authority (ORDA)
Local member Alejandro Bravo,
the decision to stay in one’s home
country or leave often comes down
to a choice between life and death.
“I grew up with so many
problems,” said Bravo, who is
from Venezuela. “We faced many
indignities. We learned how to laugh
at disgrace.”
Violence, failed economic policies
and chronic food shortages fueled
massive protests in Venezuela in
2014. Bravo joined the movement.
A government crackdown against
protesters—some of whom were
beaten, imprisoned or killed—only
fanned the flames of civil unrest.
“I had to do something to push
back against power doing too much
damage to a beautiful country and
beautiful people,” said Bravo, who
continued protesting until his life
was at risk.
With a tourist visa, Bravo left his
home and family, arriving in Florida
in December 2018.
Asylum seekers must apply for
asylum within one year of arrival in
the United States.
Bravo applied within two months.
The next step—obtaining a work
permit and Social Security number—
was estimated to take three months.
Bravo waited 18.
Bravo submitted his biometrics—
fingerprints, photo and signature—to
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS), a standard part
of the immigration process that
confirms identity and checks
immigration and criminal history.
Bravo was told the final step—an
interview to determine whether his
asylum case would be approved
or denied—would happen in six
months. Seven years later, he is still
waiting.
Sunny days
“As a child, I dreamed of being
in a place with four seasons,” said
Bravo.
Working in a hotel as a night
auditor in Orlando, Bravo liked the
work, but the lifestyle didn’t suit him.
When the opportunity arose for a job
in New York, Bravo jumped at it.
Bravo grew up in an industrial
town with an electrician father who
worked at a mill. Bravo’s schooling
included electrical training and
construction. He attended college
and also taught English. Highly
transferable skill, a strong work
ethic and an easygoing nature led to
success in every job he held.
“A manager at the staffing
company I worked for said they had
a position for me at a resort in Lake
Placid,” said Bravo.
When Bravo arrived in Lake Placid
in October 2019, fall was fading fast.
He soon bought his first winter coat.
He was beginning to feel more at
peace and settle into his new life.
April 2026
12 The Work Force