Louisville - In recent spring, Gerardo Serrano worked with a thoroughbred horse race in a barn at Churchill Downs, the famous racecourse that hosted the Kentucky Derby.

The 1,000-pound animal peeked at the head from the white stall, while the others spread out in the circle inside the barn wooden fence. Serrano pushes a large broom to remove hay from the barn opening.

He originally came from Morelia, Michoacán, and came to the United States on a temporary visa about 12 years ago.

He is one of the thousands of workers who use temporary H-2B visas for non-agricultural seasonal labor to care for horse racing nationwide. These visas are only used for temporary positions – each time up to one year. They are common in seasonal work, beautification or work in the horse industry.

However, Serrano eventually managed three years ago to get our permanent residence or green card.

"Thank God, we went through the visa process legally and then we were able to move on to the next process," Serrano said. Thanks to his green card, his two 12- and 16-year-olds were also able to come to the United States last year.

Job racing industry work pays off in many ways. Workers like the Horse Groom get a winning horse cash reward, which can exceed tens of thousands of dollars.

But there is another potential incentive: the opportunity to live permanently in the United States.

Thanks Regulatory changes Effective three days before President Trump's inauguration, more and more workers will soon join Serrano in an attempt to turn temporary employment into permanent.

This is especially true in the horse racing industry, where employers may be more willing to pay thousands of dollars upfront for the right workers, which will give them a competitive advantage in their next race.

Relax green card application

In the past, legal experts said applying for a green card in the U.S. on a temporary visa would provide more review of immigration officials’ applications. Temporary workers must prove that their intentions can only enter the United States in a short period of time. Nevertheless, applying for a green card application will not only harm the chances of H-2B workers to renew their visas, but also increase the risk of the green card itself being rejected.

However, the new rules clearly clarify that such workers are eligible to apply for permanent residence in the United States without risking visa status.

“Now everyone is taking a deep breath because the process becomes easier,” said attorney Keith Pabian, who specializes in providing H-2B visas to the hospitality industry. Most of his clients are pursuing choices, he said.

"Everyone feels more confident that the green card will go through it without a doubt and during the application process we don't have to work so hard to get people to use the H-2B visa."

Biden-era rule may take years to revoke the Trump administration, leaving a path to immigration for thousands of temporary visas, even if the administration tries to shut down others, e.g. Certain asylums or speech program.

Amid the uncertainty of low hats and future competition for H-2B visas, letting workers on green cards also enable employers to maintain their precious employees more certainly.

“They want to have something so that whenever they go beyond these visas, they have a backup plan to get workers a green card.

Employers consider the process

Although data is difficult to obtain, industry experts believe that 20 to 70% of the workforce on any track are made from H-2B visa workers.

It is not clear what it is common to obtaining green cards across the industry. It’s up to the trainer to decide whether they want to do so. But lawyers interviewed by this article said employers have become more interested in sponsoring workers in recent months.

There are also obstacles. Employers must bear expensive upfront costs and once completed, workers can seek other jobs. It's also very long, up to five years.

But employers explore the option as an alternative to work visas to have a workforce that can take on professional responsibilities, or because they have established close personal connections.

"More often, the reason they want to do this is because they have spent a lot of time training these workers through the H-2B program," Muaulem said. "By permanently letting them do more tasks in the off-season, they are able to train others, they are able to take on more diverse tasks."

Lawyers say employers have a lot of uncertainty about the availability of foreign labor in terms of changes in the Trump administration regulations and increased immigration enforcement. Therefore, employers are trying to find other ways to increase the stability of their workforce.

They said more employers are now asking about the green card application process. The new rules make it easier to consult clients through the entire process.

"With the crackdown on immigration, more employers will join the H-2B program because that will be their only option," Muram said. In many labor sectors, such as hotels, horse industry or other sectors, some sectors of the labor force may lack legal status.

But the annual cap of temporary work visas for non-agricultural labor is 66,000.

“Getting a visa will become more competitive, which will prompt more employers to try (green card),” Mualem said. “Even if it is a long-term plan, there are significant benefits for both employers and employees.”

Visa Green Card Pipeline Helps Trainers Secure Workforce

The trainers consider the workers to be part of the competition. After all, workers not only get benefits from champion horses, but also pose responsibility for their well-being and preparation for their competitiveness.

These characters are considered specialized: not only someone can walk into the barn and act with purebred. Over the years, trainers have established close personal connections with workers.

"They are good guys, guys," said Dallas Stewart, a horse racing coach at Churchill Downs. "They helped us get the game together, so they helped us put the whole business together."

Dallas sponsors 10 visas for workers from Mexico and Peru.

"Visa costs a lot of money, so once you get a green card, it can work for a long time," said another Churchill Downs-based coach Ian Wilkes. His workforce's green card and visa are mainly from Guatemala and Mexico. He said his green card costs about $10,000 each.

The H-2B visa requires employers to try to seek a domestic worker to fill the position first. The employer then has to pay for applying for a visa, providing transportation, housing and health care.

"The whole problem is that I don't have any Americans walking in the barn and looking for a job at 4:30 a.m.," Wilkes said. "So without these visas, I won't have any help."

The trainers say that even with a path to permanent status, these workers did not replace domestic jobs.

“The main goal of any trainer on the pipeline is that they can secure a worker once they can ensure a worker, they want to be able to get them to have a green card,” said Eric Hamelback, CEO of the National Riders’ Association of Mercy and Conservation. “There is at least one understanding that if we don’t have these programs, it’s not a workforce that can’t be created.”

Trainers worry about changes in plans

But a visa cannot guarantee labor. The 66,000-VISA cap means that the labor force is ultimately unreliable.

"It's a hassle," Kentucky coach Dale Romans said in a May press conference. "And it's hard to plan for the future because you're reapplying every year, every ten months, you're reapplying for a new visa, and there's no guarantee you'll get them."

The ultimate goal is to keep the same workforce. The trainers told NPR they see the value in the same worker grooming, walking and training the same horse.

Employers are also concerned about future workplace enforcement increases and lower limits.

Herbert Cardona Marroquin came to the United States from Guatemala (H-2B) visa and worked in Kentucky and Florida.

His trainer advised him to do paperwork and identification with him at any time in case law enforcement contacted him.

Cardona Marroquin said: "I love horses, now I have the opportunity to have a visa here, and I'm happy to work here." But he wants more stable and permanent status.

"But hopefully one day I'll have the opportunity to sort everything out, that's what we all want, right?"

Employers do face the risk of leaving after green card - unlike H-2 visas, workers with permanent residence have nothing to do with a specific employer.

"That's gambling," said coach Wilkes. "Sometimes it's heartbreaking, but you have to keep moving forward."