Teamsters Must Stand In Support of TPS
Today, the Federal Government announced the end to Temporary Protective Status that covers over 200,000 Salvadorans who live in the United States.This vital program was established to offer relief to thousands of Salvadorans facing humanitarian crises due to natural disasters and civil unrest in El Salvador. Salvadorans are the largest group of immigrants living in the U.S. that are protected by this program. Most TPS holders, many of whom are also Teamsters have been in the U.S. for close to 20 years and have made the U.S. their home where they have raised their families and worked to grow our economy. These hard working men and women are our neighbors, our co-workers, and our friends. They deserve a chance to attain what is promised in our Constitution, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
This latest attack on immigrant communities is another demonstration of the hateful agenda that currently dominates political discourse in our country. By pushing thousands of people into the shadows, the government is also making it harder for immigrants to stand up for their rights and organize for a voice on the job and in their communities. We must view this action for what it is, an open attack on working people. The same politicians that support the end of TPS also support a broad agenda that hurts working families including passing right to work laws, opposing minimum wage increases, and fighting against expanding protections for workers.
In order to fight back against this hateful agenda, Teamsters across the country must stand united shoulder to shoulder with our immigrant brothers and sisters as they face challenging times. We must continue mobilizing in our workplaces to ensure that our voices are not silenced by employers who threaten to use ICE as a way to discourage Union organizing. We must push on our elected leaders in Congress to take action and demand that they create a permanent solution that provides a pathway to citizenship for all immigrants. This will not only strengthen our communities, it will strengthen our labor movement that should be inclusive of all people regardless of their background. When working people unite, there is nothing that can stop us.
Teamsters Local 396 represents UPS and Sanitation workers in Southern California. The Local Union also serves Members in other miscellaneous industries such as logistics, recycling and feed delivery services.
