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5 Ways Christians Can Support Refugee Employment & Entrepreneurship

Emmanuel Gospel Center 9/27/17 Emmanuel Gospel Center 9/27/17

Refugee Employment & Entrepreneurship: Why It Matters to the Church

Work is one the most challenging issues for refugees rebuilding their lives in the U.S. — and a perfect place for the Church to step in.

Refugee Employment & Entrepreneurship: Why It Matters to the Church

By Fargol Dyrud and Kylie Mean, Greater Boston Refugee Ministry

We are in one the biggest refugee crises in world history. Over 60 million people are currently displaced from their homes and separated from family. As Christians—called by Jesus to care for the stranger—we must contemplate our role in addressing this crisis.

In our work through the Greater Boston Refugee Ministry, we have learned that work is one of the most challenging issues for refugees rebuilding their lives in the US. Lack of prospects for work fosters unhealthy dependencies, stifled potential, and loneliness. Work provides dignity—it’s a path toward economic independence, an opportunity to build capacities, and a place to develop relationships.

“Figures at a glance.” The UN Refugee Agency. Accessed September 1, 2017. http://www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html

The geopolitical forces causing the refugee crisis don’t discriminate by occupation or education. Refugees come to the US with a broad range of skills and experience. Some are doctors, engineers, or other highly skilled professionals. Others come with little formal education, many having survived in refugee camps for significant portions of their lives. All arrive in the US with the same hope—that they will be able to live in safety and build their future.

Studies have shown that refugees and immigrants contribute positively to local economies. In the Franklin County, Ohio, refugees contributed an estimated total $1.6 billion per year to the Columbus Metropolitan Area alone through the combined economic impact of the resettlement agencies, refugee workers, and refugee-owned businesses.

Despite their demonstrated benefit to local economies, refugees face systemic barriers to securing work. Some find employment that fits their gifts and experiences. But many are currently unable to realize their potential in employment or entrepreneurship—they struggle to find a job, remain underemployed, or face significant obstacles in opening a business.

REFUGEE VOICES

"Just think about the change from my previous experience to my current one! I was a UN Investment Specialist, with an office in the Ministry Authority. I had meetings and conferences at the highest levels of Government and with international entities. Here, it’s been so difficult to even find a job—to navigate the employment and recruiting system to get a rare interview, all to find that the only job I can get is a simple job, for little pay, requiring no skill." - Syrian male

Refugee employment/entrepreneurship matters to the church. Here’s why.

1. God has dignified work for all.

God has always intended—starting with the first man and woman—for humanity to steward His creation. Genesis 2:15 says “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” (NIV, emphasis added). As beings made in the image of God, we are designed to engage in fruitful work as a small reflection of God’s creative power.

While God later cursed the man with toilsome labor, work itself was not a curse. God first gave work to humankind in the Garden of Eden—before the Fall—as a blessing and a dignity.

Over time a broad tapestry of occupations has developed as societies have changed. What hasn’t changed is the God-given privilege and call to use the combination of gifts and capacities God has given each of us in regular labor.

Refugee Voices

"Everything is related, and by doing good work, I do the will of God by loving my work, my coworkers, my boss, and everyone I meet. Then when I’m on my way back home, while tired, I’m full of joy and happy to be alive." - Syrian male

2. Work builds dignity and purpose for refugees.

Even if our current job doesn’t match squarely with our talents, work can provide dignity through the opportunity to provide for our families. Earning a living and working towards self-sufficiency is healthy and empowering.

For the refugee, getting their first job in the US provides a family with critical momentum. Earning a solid wage can help provide a necessary boost to get a family out of survival mode. They can then get started on a career ladder or on a path to opening their own business.

As refugees gain the resources to provide for the basic needs of their family, they reclaim more energy to pursue less tangible needs, like connection and relationship. Once able to plan beyond the next month, a family also has space to dream about their own and their children’s future and access the many opportunities and resources this country has to offer.

When our work intersects well with how God has gifted us, we further feel deep satisfaction and joy from being useful, productive, and fully engaged. Frederick Buechner wrote, "The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet." Refugees, too, look forward to a job that calls upon their skills, personality, and capacities.

Refugee Voices

"I love being an architect because I've been always interested in designing spaces where people live and socialize in the routine of daily life." - Syrian female

3. Refugees foster mutually transformative relationships in the workplace.

We spend a considerable number of waking hours at work. The work environment provides refugees significant opportunity to build language skills. At the same time, they learn about American culture and develop relationships with members of the community, including employers, coworkers, and customers.

But workplace cultural learning doesn’t just flow one way. Refugees broaden Americans’ understanding of God’s diverse creation—employers and coworkers benefit from learning about different cultures and backgrounds. Teams with refugees can generate fresh ideas for business growth as they come to learn about a broader landscape of potential customers.

Refugee Voices

"Amidst all this I’ve experienced lots of struggles, and I’ve been humbled. But I’ve also experienced joy and great satisfaction just because I have a job and relationships with my coworkers—I’m happy to see them again every day." - Syrian male

Refugees also model character traits in the workplace that American-born workers rarely possess in the same capacity. The life experience of refugees has engraved into their DNA humbleness, resilience, loyalty, and sense of community that enriches their work relationships.

“Refugees will suddenly be [like], you're their brother, you’re their sister, you’re their family, instantaneously. If you help, if you give a little bit, you get back that much more," says Meggan Ward, Director of Operations and Training, Beautiful Day Rhode Island.

In fact, we need the strength of character of refugees to remedy parts of our own damaged work cultures. We can all testify that we need more caring employers and work environments, more of a sense of community, and greater loyalty in our modern American workplace.

Anyone who has worked with refugees has experienced in them a remarkable strength that transforms the workplace dynamic.

Refugee Voices

"My job has a lot of physical movement, which is very good for my health. We can choose to see the positive side and make it more important than the negative one. This motivates me to do a good job, to do my duty at work the best way that I can." - Syrian male

4. Your Church Can Play a Key Role

We believe the Church is vital to supporting refugees to find sustainable employment or pursue entrepreneurial dreams that would enrich our city.

Any church has the potential to change a refugees’ trajectory on their employment and entrepreneurship journey. How? Your church can become a refugee family’s community network. The Church’s extensive social ties provide refugees with supportive connections that could otherwise take years for them to build in the US.

Each church has different skills they can leverage in addressing the issue of refugee employment and entrepreneurship. Communities of faith can offer (among many other things):

access to critical resources and knowledge
a sense of community and connection
mentoring relationships
a space for refugees to soundboard or test business ideas

If you’re interested in making a positive difference in the lives of refugees, pray with your church community about how God may be calling you to engage in refugee employment or entrepreneurship.

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Fargol Dyrud

Fargol was a 2017 GBRM research associate working in refugee employment/entrepreneurship and refugee housing as a part of her MBA. As an Iranian immigrant whose life has been affected by geopolitical forces, she empathizes with refugees and is passionate about serving them. Fargol leverages her fresh, insider perspective to push the boundaries of the refugee resettlement/recovery field.

Kylie Mean

Kylie’s heart for social enterprise, intercultural ministry and hospitality fits well with her role with EGC’s Greater Boston Refugee Ministry. She helps GBRM leadership and ambassadors consider how they can empower refugees and their employers to create transformational employment opportunities.

HOW ARE WE DOING?

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Christ@Work: An Overview of Faith-Work Integration Ministries

Christ@Work (C@W) ministries help Christians live out their faith through their work: in their workplace relationships, work ethic, and professional impact on the world. This birds-eye view gives a glimpse of the scope of C@W ministries thriving nationwide today.

Christ@Work: An Overview of Faith-Work Integration Ministries

By the ARC Team

What’s a Christ@Work Ministry?

Committed Christians want to live into their faith seven days a week, not just during Sunday worship or mid-week groups. Those committed to loving God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength acknowledge that we spend a majority of our weekly time and energy in our work life.

Christ@Work (C@W) ministries, also known as Faith at Work, Faith-Work Integration, or the more limiting term Marketplace Ministry, help Christians live out their faith through their work: in their workplace relationships, work ethic, and professional impact on the world.

By no means a comprehensive list, this birds-eye view should give you a glimpse of the scope of C@W ministries thriving nationwide today.

Find Faith-Work Ministries

Overview of Christ@Work Ministries

1. Ministries to Bless the Christian Worker

Personal Ethics

Christians in skilled professions may face ethical dilemmas and professional challenges for which pastors without specialized knowledge aren’t equipped to offer counsel. These ministries offer literature or seminars on personal ethics. Speciality-specific convenings, such as medical ethics for Christian doctors, help Christians connect their faith to the specialized decisions they face.

Spiritual Care

Work life, like all aspects of life, can be a means of personal transformation and spiritual formation. These ministries offer counsel, chaplaincy, and coaching about spiritual development through work.

Spiritual Practices at Work

Some ministries offer materials or guidance for holding prayer meetings or Bible studies in the workplace. Such gatherings can provide workers otherwise unavailable for church groups opportunities for Christian formation. Such gatherings can also connect Christians in the workplace for mutual support.

Vocational Discernment

Christians with a robust theology of work can pursue the glory of God in anything from janitorial tasks to stock portfolio management. These ministries honor the dignity and theological meaning of the work itself, helping workers discern their gifts and calling, and align their career choices accordingly.

Christian Professional Networking

Skilled workers may find themselves the only Christian in their workplace. These ministries convene Christians in the same field for fellowship and peer support amidst professional or personal challenges to their faith.

2. Ministries to Bless Coworkers and the Company

Workplace Evangelism

What Christians often imagine when they first hear phrases such as Marketplace Ministry or Faith at Work, workplace evangelism-focused ministries help Christians have a positive relational impact on their colleagues. They support Christians working in secular settings to develop respectful and authentic relationships with their co-workers, to reflect God’s love, and to invite spiritual seekers in their sphere of influence towards a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. They may also hold workplace seminars or Bible studies as opportunities for spiritual conversation.

Corporate Ethics and Transformation

An unhealthy corporate culture not only makes life difficult for the employees, but it also undermines the long-term viability of the company. These ministries offer guidance for wisely challenging unhealthy corporate dynamics and taking practical initiative towards a lasting transformation of company values towards just, ethical, sustainable, and humanizing practices for the health of the organization.

3. Ministries To Bless the Community, Culture, and Planet

Professional Excellence Societies

To have a respected voice in the culture, those in artistic and creative professions may wish to hone excellence in their craft. These ministries promote Christian professional skill excellence to inspire and lead culture shift towards godly values, including the progress of their art to the glory of God.

Social Advocacy

Companies and organizations may have a just or unjust impact on human thriving and environmental sustainability, both locally and around the world. Christians are called to be faithful stewards of the earth and advocates for vulnerable populations. These ministries offer social impact analysis and promote social responsibility in company employment, vendor, environmental, and investment practices.

Mobilizing Professional Skill

Vulnerable populations may not have access to much needed but highly skilled services, such as dentistry. These ministries organize the donation of professional skill for under-served people.

Employment Facilitation

For some categories of people, significant barriers exist to securing employment. These ministries promote the God-given dignity of work for all by organizing Christians to offer job opportunities and entrepreneurship support for vulnerable populations, such as minorities, refugees, or those returning from incarceration.

Find Faith-Work Ministries