Friend Stuck in Toxic Job Due to Green Card Sponsorship – Any Options?

[Indylaya 0]

My friend moved to the U.S. from Vietnam in 2013 with her older brother. She has been staying legally through school and employer sponsorship. Now, at 25, she’s been waiting for years for her green card, but there’s still no clear timeline—it could take anywhere from 1 to 10+ more years.

The problem is that her job is terrible. The working conditions are bad, and she’s miserable, but she can’t leave because her employer is sponsoring her green card. She feels trapped and depressed.

Are there any options for her? Can she transfer her sponsorship to another employer, or is there any way she can leave without losing her place in line? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[appleblossom 3,256]

1 hour ago, Indylaya said:

My friend moved to the U.S. from Vietnam in 2013 with her older brother. She has been staying legally through school and employer sponsorship. Now, at 25, she’s been waiting for years for her green card, but there’s still no clear timeline—it could take anywhere from 1 to 10+ more years.

The problem is that her job is terrible. The working conditions are bad, and she’s miserable, but she can’t leave because her employer is sponsoring her green card. She feels trapped and depressed.

Are there any options for her? Can she transfer her sponsorship to another employer, or is there any way she can leave without losing her place in line? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

More info is needed. What job, what visa category, what stage of the application is she at, what’s her Priority Date etc? And what visa is she currently working on? 
 

It would be better if she joined VJ herself really. 

Edited Wednesday at 07:37 AM by appleblossom

[Boiler 46,219]

The only visa I can think of is a H1b but she can change jobs

[Indylaya 0]

23 hours ago, appleblossom said:

More info is needed. What job, what visa category, what stage of the application is she at, what’s her Priority Date etc? And what visa is she currently working on? 
 

It would be better if she joined VJ herself really. 

Thanks for your response! Here are the details:

Job: Working at a doctor’s office. 

Visa Category: H-1B. (majored in STEM; bachelor's degree in Chemistry)

Current Status: Still on a work visa, waiting for green card processing.

Green Card Stage: Everything is filed, and she’s just waiting.

Priority Date: 1/15/22 (USCIS is only processing up to 2/1/21 right now).

Issue: Since green card movement is extremely slow (due to annual caps and per-country limits), it could take years before she becomes eligible for adjustment of status. She’s miserable in her job but can’t leave because her employer is sponsoring her.

[Boiler 46,219]

See above