Jen lives in Brooklyn. She works full-time in the financial district, while her kids go to school in Chinatown. The logistics are more complicated than they might appear.
The commute from home to school takes 50 minutes, and from school to
work takes 30 minutes. Jen is in the office until at least 5:30 p.m.
School lets out at 2:30 p.m., after which the children, ages 5 and 9,
need attention and help with homework.
Without help, “The mornings would be challenging, but the afternoons
would make it impossible,” she said. “I would either get fired or I
would have to quit my job.”
The most practical solution for her family: hire a nanny or an au
pair. Inevitably, this meant relying on an immigrant provider, because
“It’s the pool of candidates who are available.”
“And nannies are hard to come by,” she said. “Friends would say, ‘You
want to start a year in advance.’”
Jen and her husband are thrilled to have found an au pair from China. The au pair can shuttle the children to and from school, help them learn Mandarin, and ensure the kids are not left unsupervised—a critical safeguard for their well-being. Jen, a financial analyst, can occasionally work from home, but not without distractions. “I hope everyone would understand, even men, that you can’t concentrate when children are all around,” Jen said. Her husband is an emergency room doctor.
“We are well off … privileged,” Jen said. “For someone with less
means and time, I don’t know how people do it.”
Nonetheless, Jen’s ability to work is beholden to the whims of
immigration policy. In late May, the Trump administration paused
interviews for J-1 visas, purportedly to impose new vetting procedures,
which resumed in June. The J-1 visa, which includes au pairs, is an
educational and cultural exchange visa.
“We are in a small bit of terror right now,” said Jen. “As things
ratchet up, there’s always a little voice in my head, ‘Please, please
don’t revoke visas.’ If she goes, then I would have to quit my job.”
It’s something Jen really doesn’t want to do—“for the basic reason
that I am my own person,” she said.
“I get a lot of satisfaction from my job. … I want to be productive. I want to be part of the workforce,” she said. “I’m paying my taxes. I’m producing for my company. That’s what I would think they would want.”
