After fleeing violence, many Venezuelan migrants seek work but lack permits

On a windy Chicago morning in early November, Siam Pasarly arrived to set up his Hire-a-Refugee job fair before the doors opened. Dozens of Venezuelan migrants were already waiting outside.

“They came at 8 o’clock,” Pasarly said. “They come earlier than us because they need jobs.”

In recent months, cities like Chicago and New York have received an influx of Venezuelan migrants who escaped the political and economic turmoil in their country. States like Texas and Florida have been sending migrants to these cities by the busload. 

A recent decision by the Joe Biden administration gave many Venezuelan migrants temporary protected status, but work permits can take time. And people who arrived after the July 31 cutoff are not eligible to apply for work authorization. 

With the ongoing labor shortage in the United States, plenty of jobs are available, but employers often can’t hire migrants who lack work authorization.

Pasarly, the job fair organizer, is a refugee himself. The 33-year-old fled the Taliban in Afghanistan nearly two years ago, and he had intended that the job fair connect documented workers to employers. He brought in employers from several industries, as well as a few social service groups. 

“We invite the hospitalities — restaurants, hotels. We invite the manufacturing companies, the construction, the services industry … the senior care centers,” Pasarly said. 

He added that nearly 500 people, most of whom have work permits, had registered for the fair. But word of the event had spread among Venezuelan migrants, and Pasarly said they came even if they’re not authorized to work. 

“They are desperate for [a] job,” he said. “I cannot negotiate on behalf of them to the companies because without documents you cannot have [a] job.” 

Yobeisy Estrada is one of these migrants. The 40-year-old mother of two arrived in the U.S. after the Biden administration’s cutoff date for expedited work permits for Venezuelans. She may still be able to apply for one, but the process is complicated and time-consuming.

“Of course, I have to wait the time necessary to be able to apply for a work permit,” she said in Spanish. “In the meantime, if anyone could help me with a job, I would accept it. That’s why I came here today.” 

Migrants like Estrada often have to wait for months — sometimes even over a year — to get work authorization. She did not get any leads and left the job fair disappointed.

So did Freddy Burbano.

Burbano, 35, was a pharmacy tech in Venezuela. He arrived in the U.S. at around the same time as Estrada. He said he hopes to provide a better life for his two kids back home and is looking for any job he can find. 

“Whether it’s moving furniture, sweeping, washing dishes at a restaurant — all I need is to work,” Burbano said in Spanish. 

Without a job permit, he, too, left the fair empty-handed, but he said he trusts in “God’s perfect timing.”

Meanwhile, employers at the job fair were also on the lookout. Gibsons, a steakhouse in downtown Chicago, is desperate for workers. 

“I’m looking for 20 people — prep cooks, line cooks — that’s the stations that we need to cover fast,” said Noel Jaramillo, the executive chef at Gibsons. An hour into the fair, he said the number of people who came to his booth without work permits was overwhelming. 

“They have started the process or something like that, but at this time, unfortunately there’s nothing I can do about it,” Jaramillo said. 

Many other employers at the fair were in the same boat. For his part, Jaramillo said he hopes more migrants can get their authorization so that his industry — and others — can put them to work.