The first New American Workforce partner in the Miami area was the InterContinental Miami Hotel. Since December 2012, InterContinental Miami has demonstrated a high degree of commitment to the well-being of their employees by hosting free citizenship workshops designed to assist immigrant employees with the naturalization process. Through their New American Workforce partnership, InterContinental Miami has informed numerous employees and their respective families about citizenship, many of whom are now proud citizens of the United States. These services are made possible through a collaboration with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) Miami, the legal provider for the workshops.
One of the employees that has benefited from the program is Yanet Moriera. Originally from Cuba, Yanet has worked as a room attendant at InterContinental Miami since 2011, after migrating to the U.S. a few years prior. Yanet was drawn to the U.S. because of the economic opportunities and the American values of freedom and equality. After maintaining legal permanent resident status for several years, Yanet desired U.S. citizenship so that she could contribute more to her community. However, the citizenship application’s length and language were barriers for Yanet. Fortunately, InterContinental Miami hosted a citizenship workshop in June 2015, which provided the necessary resources and support for Yanet to transcend these obstacles and become a U.S. citizen in May 2016, just one year later. This change in legal status greatly impacted Yanet, who observed:
“I feel happy with more power now. I feel part of this country, and I feel that I have rights. My life here is more sentimental and has changed because I have achieved citizenship, and now I am safer.”
Through these citizenship workshops at the worksite, InterContinental Miami continues to demonstrate respect and support for their employees, bolstering workforce satisfaction and improving the livelihoods of employees and their families. InterContinental Miami’s success with citizenship workshops has inspired 40 other Miami businesses to partner with New American Workforce, making Miami a national hub for workforce integration.