New Immigrant Community Empowerment (NICE) is a New York-based non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of immigrant workers.
NICE focuses its work on improving the lives of migrant workers, especially those in precarious working conditions, domestic workers, and recently arrived immigrants.
In this way, one of the main tasks of NICE is to connect workers with less access to secure jobs, with potential employers. Likewise, training is proposed for immigrant workers, on topics such as job security, English classes, labor rights, workforce development, among others.
In this sense, NICE is an organization that works to make New York a place where immigrants, regardless of their immigration status, can live and work fairly and fairly.
NICE's early efforts focused on immigrant day laborers in the Jackson Heights area, however, in recent years its membership now includes recent immigrants, immigrant women transitioning into the construction industry, and construction workers. non-union immigrants.
“At NICE, members are involved in all aspects of the organization, from the collective search for jobs in the morning to outreach and participatory action research. By prioritizing the development of leadership skills in our member base, we have seen sustainability and continuity in our member-led organization,” the organization explains on its website.
According to NICE, the most recurrent problems faced by immigrant workers in NY are: Underemployment and Lack of Access to Safe and Protected Jobs; exploitation in the workplace; Lack of access to basic services and workforce development services; and Abusive and fraudulent Services.
NICE addresses these issues through a comprehensive strategy, which includes:
- An Employment Center, where immigrant workers collectively search for employment
- The constant training of workers in health, safety, and construction. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) provides 30-hour training to 100 workers each month.
- Advice to workers to recover stolen wages. About 60 cases per month are treated.
- Referral services, employment rights training, immigration rights, access to healthcare, and workers' compensation.
Learn more about this organization at the following link: https://www.nynice.org/
