Manager’s Desk: Inspiration from immigration

There have been days when it was easy to be a pessimist and see the glass as half-empty.

But eventually, perhaps when least expected, something provides inspiration and my inner optimism returns. One such event occurred with an employee I’ll call “Mario.”

Mario and his wife immigrated to the U.S. She is a U.S. citizen who works for the Veterans Administration. They have four children, a stable family and are a great example of a hard-working couple trying to make it.

Mario came to our shop’s attention 2 years ago, when a newly hired manager of our company recommended Mario after they had previously worked together at a customer’s facility. Our manager assured us Mario would be a worthy addition. At the time, we determined our best approach was to employ him through a staffing company and offer him a 2- to 3-month trial run. Then if he wasn’t a good fit, he could be easily released. In Mario’s case, his favorable referral proved accurate, and we started efforts to make him a permanent employee.

He was excited and everything seemed to be moving forward in a positive fashion until an unexpected issue arose. The staffing company explained that there was a problem with the renewal of his work visa and, until resolved, he couldn’t be legally hired by our company. Mario quickly contacted an immigration attorney and said the matter should be corrected soon, allowing us to continue the hiring process.