A bill boosts granting US citizenship to millions of undocumented immigrants classified as “essential workers” during the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative is sponsored by Democratic Senator Alex Padilla. The politician has already announced he will reintroduce it this year, speaking at a conference at the Coalition for Immigrant Human Rights in Los Angeles.
“We cannot forget the essential workers who kept us fed and safe by risking their own and their families’ health,” declared the California state senator.
Benefits for over five million undocumented
Padilla said three out of four undocumented workers in the United States have performed tasks considered “essential” during the pandemic. And “although the emergency declaration for COVID-19 expired on May 11, the country has a debt to him,” the Democrat said.
The legal project is called the “Citizenship Act for Essential Workers.” Its purpose is to legalize their immigration status and open a path to citizenship in the United States, for immigrants who have been classified as “essential” workers within the past three years.
Specifically, the measure would benefit more than five million immigrants, workers in the food industry, cleaning, child care workers, and senior citizens.
They can also receive immigrant benefits covered by the “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program” and “Temporary Protected Status” (DACA and TPS, respectively). Plus the nearly two million agricultural workers already living in the country.
Citizenship for Essential Workers in the United States
Democratic Senator Alex Padilla introduced this bill for the first time in February 2021. At that time there was not enough support for approval. can i do it now
Democrats constitute a simple majority in the US Senate. Meanwhile, Republicans dominate the House of Representatives.
This implies a difficult path to reintroduction and approval of the “Citizenship Act for Essential Workers”. However, Padilla is determined.
Referring to immigrants working in “essential jobs” during the COVID-19 crisis, the politician said, “They have won the opportunity to become citizens of the United States of America.”
