Please visit our introduction to Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits HERE. 

If you are in the United States and have a temporary work visa, you may qualify for unemployment benefits if you were laid off, fired, or unemployed within the COVID-19 context.

Gerardo Santiago Hernández is from Guerrero, a community in the state of Hidalgo where job opportunities are scarce. Because of this, Gerardo was forced to look for a job in the US on an H-2A visa to support himself, his wife and his 4 children (the youngest just six years old). When Gerardo had to leave his family, he did it with the hope of a better life, but unfortunately, he didn’t get what he had hoped for.

On April 22, 2020, President Trump issued Presidential Proclamation 10014 that suspends entry of certain new immigrants who do not yet already have an approved immigrant visa. A previous proclamation issued on the 22nd of June, 2020, extended the immigrant visa proclamation through December 31, 2020.  This proclamation does not apply to persons with non-immigrant visas or other travel documents valid prior to June 24, 2020.

Gerardo Santiago Hernández es originario de Guerrero, una comunidad en el estado de Hidalgo en donde las oportunidades laborales son escasas, razón por la cual, Gerardo se vio orillado a buscar trabajo en los Estados Unidos con visa H-2A, pues necesitaba mantenerse y asegurar el sustento de su esposa y sus 4 hijos; el más pequeño de seis años de edad.  Cuando Gerardo se tuvo que separar de su familia lo hizo con la esperanza de mejorar su vida, pero desafortunadamente no fue lo que esperaba. 

June is internationally recognized as LGBTQ+ Pride Month (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer). Pride Month is an opportunity to celebrate the diverse gender identities and sexualities of all migrant workers. 

Pride Month is a time to commemorate the LGBTQ+ community’s fight, celebrate the freedoms we have won, and come together to defeat discrimination. Nowadays, we celebrate Pride Month with parades and parties. But its historical roots are more radical. 

Sandra and Tatiana worked for the same family separately, in 2016 and 2018. But their experience was far too similar. 

While working as au pairs in Maryland, Sandra and Tatiana were forced to work beyond contracted hours and responsibilities. Their employers limited their access to food, restricted their movements, threatened them with deportation, and constantly monitored them through a network of surveillance cameras. Sandra and Tatiana arrived in Maryland indebted after paying thousands of dollars in program fees. 

Sandra y Tatiana trabajaron para la misma familia por separado, en 2016 y 2018. Pero su experiencia fue demasiado similar.