Businesses cope with Trump ban
From start- ups to big corporations, businesses assess how new policy will affect foreign investment and recruiting
As Muslim entrepreneur Samia Bahsoun surveyed her Asbury Park, N. J., business Monday in the aftermath of President Trump’s temporary immigration ban, she came to an unsettling realization.
Her wireless start- up, Cap wave Technologies, faces a serious risk of losing budding investment opportunities from venture capitalists in Malaysia and plans to seek funding from investors in the Middle East. She said she also is concerned that talented Muslim students who often attend American universities will be deterred.
“This executive order is a very clear indication that we’re not welcome,” she said. “As this president is closing the door on the world, the world is going to start closing the door on us.”
Although immigrants from Malaysia, which has a large Mus-
“As this president is closing the door on the world, the world is going to start closing the door on us.” Muslim entrepreneur Samia Bahsoun
lim population, were not included in Trump’s temporary travel ban affecting seven countries, the president’s action cast a cloud of uncertainty over U. S. businesses of all sorts as they scrambled to assess the policy’s impact.
Amid growing concern that the ban could throttle the flow of foreign talent, block certain employees from returning to their home offices and harm small businesses that rely on immigrant spending, some U. S. corporations decried the immigration blockade.
Karen Eng, CEO of Schaumberg, Ill.based engineering consultancy CSMI, said she fears that her customers, such as Kraft, General Mills and Nestle, could scale back foreign investment plans.
“It could have a big effect on my business if they choose not to expand their capabilities overseas,” she said.
Technology companies with professionals and customers who could be affected by the ban swiftly denounced the policy, including Google, Facebook, Apple, Microsoft, Yelp, Tesla and Airbnb.
Ride- hailing firm Lyft donated $ 1million to the American Civil Liberties Union, which is battling the ban, after rival Uber came under scrutiny for what critics said was an insensitive response.
Uber later issued a statement assailing the policy and pledged a $ 3 million legal defense fund for immigrant Uber drivers caught outside the USA.
Other global companies with professionals spread out among dozens of countries reacted gingerly, with some declining to comment altogether, others expressing mild concern and only a few outright criticizing the action.
Ford, for example, broke the silence among the major U. S. automakers by assailing Trump’s action, even as the U. S. auto industry remains nervous about getting on Trump’s bad side as the president weighs a border tax.
“Respect for all people is a core value of Ford Motor Company, and we are proud of the rich diversity of our company here at home and around the world. That is why we do not support this policy or any other that goes against our values as a company,” CEO Mark Fields and Executive Chairman Bill Ford told employees in an email.
Some corporations with significant operations in the Middle East had nothing to say.
Representatives from oil giants Exxon Mobil and BP declined to comment about the ban.
Others were low- key. Cargill, which employs many immigrants in its meat and poultry plants, said it is working with its partners to determine what the action means for its workers.