By Lisa Chmelecki,Staff Writer

AUBURN – Employers have come up with all sorts of excuses not to hire local immigrants and refugees.

The most common, according to Pierro Rugaba, director of Refugees and Immigration Services for Catholic Charities of Maine, are:

“They don’t want to work.”

“They don’t speak English.”

“They are illegal.”

“They are Muslim and their religious practices will get in the way.”

Speaking at the Androscoggin County Chamber of Commerce’s monthly breakfast meeting Thursday, Rugaba encouraged the roomful of business and community leaders to put those stereotypes aside.

And recognize the opportunity.

“Lewiston’s refugees are a young and able work force,” he said. “The vast majority want to work and are highly motivated.”

To make his point, Rugaba shared two sets of numbers with the crowd: employment statistics for the local immigrant community and recent U.S. Census data about Maine’s aging population.

He estimated that the unemployment rate of local immigrants is 55 percent, compared to the region’s overall rate of 4.9 percent.

Rugaba explained that he reached that estimate, which he described as generous, by looking at the number of immigrants and refugees who used the local career center last year to find a job.

Of the 108 immigrants who actively sought employment, 39 got hired, and 23 still had their jobs at the end of the year, he said. Those jobs paid $8 to $10.50 an hour, he added.

Aside from battling stereotypes, Rugaba said, many immigrants are also restricted by their transportation and child-care needs.

“Many opportunities are missed because of fragmented transportation.”

Rugaba encouraged the audience to support the creation of a more comprehensive public transportation system in Lewiston-Auburn. He also emphasized the need for intensive English-speaking programs that teach work-related terms.

Such efforts will not only benefit immigrants, he promised.

“So many think this is a Somali challenge or a refugee challenge,” Rugaba said. “But employment of refugees is in everyone’s interest.”

Rugaba pointed out that recent U.S. Census numbers peg Maine as the fourth oldest state in the nation.

The number of people ages 65-74 is expected to increase by 97 percent by 2025.

“Now,” Rugaba asked the audience, “do you see an opportunity?”