Dear Freedom for Immigrants Supporters & Friends,
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken an unprecedented toll on everyone, especially people working on the front lines in the nonprofit sector supporting those most vulnerable.
At Freedom for Immigrants, our team is not just responding to the more than 6,000 people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in immigration detention. Our team also is witnessing higher rates of abuse in immigration detention with this year being the deadliest year in immigration detention since 2015. This acute secondary trauma can lead to a host of medical and mental health issues, and this trauma impacts our ability to fight for justice and the freedom of all immigrants.
That is why we at Freedom for Immigrants are committed to supporting our team, and we invite you to join us in making a difference on World Mental Health Day this week. We believe in a gold standard of care for our staff and invest in their futures. We have launched a fund to raise $92,000 to ensure each staff member continues to have fully-paid PPO health, vision, and dental insurance with a $0 deductible for in-network physical and mental health providers.
To support our team, Freedom for Immigrants reduced our workweek to four days with no reduction in pay between February and September. Studies show that a four-day week allows for better work-life balance, improved employee satisfaction, retention and mental health, especially during a pandemic. We also have given our team 21 extra sick and family care leave days during the pandemic. And we have employed an organization-wide therapist to provide group therapy and training sessions for our team.
Nonprofits like ours employ a workforce of 12.3 million people nationwide who have dedicated their lives to achieving their mission and giving back to their communities.