Salvadoran TPS expiration threatens jobs and families in Missouri meat plant
As the Temporary Protected Status for Salvadorans ends this week, workers like Alma Sandoval at a Cargill plant in Marshall face loss of work authorization and possible deportation.
The Temporary Protected Status granted to Salvadoran nationals is set to lapse this week, putting an estimated 170,000 immigrants and 150,000 U.S. citizen children at risk of losing work authorization and facing deportation. In Marshall, Missouri, Cargill meat-processing supervisor Alma Sandoval quietly collected personal items from her desk, fearing the unknown future of her legal status. Salvadorans are the third-largest TPS group after Venezuelans and Haitians, and the program has been renewed every 18 months for years.
Local leaders say the loss of these workers would strain the town’s labor market, raise costs for businesses, and affect community stability. Sandoval, who grew up in Marshall after fleeing El Salvador as a child, may have to sell her home and relocate if she cannot remain in the United States.
Why it matters
The TPS expiration could displace thousands of workers and disrupt local economies that rely on immigrant labor.
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