{"id":5747,"date":"2026-06-28T16:07:47","date_gmt":"2026-06-28T16:07:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=5747"},"modified":"2026-06-28T16:07:47","modified_gmt":"2026-06-28T16:07:47","slug":"a-devastating-reality-asylum-seeking-florida-workers-contribute-billions-to-economy-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=5747","title":{"rendered":"\u2018A devastating reality:\u2019 Asylum-seeking Florida workers contribute billions to economy, study finds"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Even before the U.S. Supreme Court gave President Donald Trump twin legal victories supporting his immigration policies designed to oust migrants from the U.S., advocates for foreign-born workers and their employers were calculating the potential losses of asylum seekers who are lawfully working around Florida and the nation.<\/p>\n

Read more Woman shot in foot by brother during group altercation in Downtown Orlando<\/a><\/p>\n

A study released last week by Washington, D.C.-based WorkPermits.US found that 541,000 workers of foreign origin in Florida have filed asylum applications, making the state\u00a0 No. 1 in the country.\u00a0 Nationally, U.S. workers applying for asylum number at least 2.3 million, contributing more than $108 billion to the economy annually in addition to $33 billion in combined taxes.<\/p>\n

Jennifer Stevens, vice president of healthcare at John Knox Village in Pompano Beach, openly worried about the immediate futures of Haitian staff members who help care for the nonprofit enclave\u2019s elderly clients.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a population of Haitian team members that we adore. Many of them have been with us for over 10 years, have amazing relationships with our elders, provide 24-hour care for them, all day, every day,\u201d she said at an online news conference sponsored by an advocacy group for asylum seekers on Wednesday. \u201cAnd to lose any of them, even one, is an impact to our elders. It\u2019s just a devastating reality for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reality seemed even worse after Supreme Court justices voted 6-3 to give the Trump Administration a green light to strip away Temporary Protection Status for thousands of Haitians and Syrians living in the United States. In a separate ruling, the court ruled that agents could physically stop asylum seekers from crossing the U.S.-Mexico border as they fled persecution for their political or religious beliefs, or ethnic or racial backgrounds.<\/p>\n

Highly vulnerable<\/h4>\n

\u201cHow are they going to make a living?\u201d Stevens asked in a phone interview. \u201cHow are they going to go back to Haiti? It is super dangerous for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The number of Haitians under John Knox Village\u2019s employ may be small at 12, out of some 300 staff.<\/p>\n

But they are part of a much greater population of South Florida residents of foreign origin who have applied for asylum to live in the United States. They work in a variety of key state industries: construction, healthcare, leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, professional services, transportation and wholesale and retail trades.<\/p>\n

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