A new coalition of business leaders in Massachusetts is calling for foreign-born workers and entrepreneurs, including those who help power the booming technology and science sectors in the state to have better legal protections, with the formation of the Massachusetts Business Coalition on Immigration, announced on Monday.
Among the local business organizations and companies joining the new coalition were officials from the Worcester Chamber of Commerce, the Kendall Square Association, and Bain and Company. There are similar nonpartisan coalitions operating in Illinois, Texas, Colorado, and Florida. Officials in the Massachusetts coalition say that a policy agenda will be developed soon, with one of their main priorities to ensure that businesses can still hire high-skilled immigrant workers.
The new Massachusetts Business Coalition will also make a point of advocating for legal residency for immigrants from El Salvador, Haiti, and other countries who received Temporary Protected Status in the US but have now had the status revoked. The group is hoping to recruit as many as 200 business leaders to the effort.
The launch event was held at the Boston office of real estate development company, HYM Investment Group, which is among the local companies giving their backing to the new coalition, on Monday. The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition’s executive director, Eva Millona, organized the coalition.