The Walt Disney Company has placed around 45 Venezuelan employees in Florida on unpaid leave as they face losing their Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The move comes after the Supreme Court ruled the Trump administration can revoke protections for roughly 350,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S.
Disney notified the employees on Tuesday. They were told their unpaid leave would begin May 20. If they can’t provide new work authorization within 30 days, they will be terminated.
“As we sort out the complexities of this situation, we have placed affected employees on leave with benefits to ensure they are not in violation of the law,” a Disney spokesperson told FOX Business. The company emphasized its commitment to employees navigating changing immigration policies.
The Supreme Court’s decision lifted a lower court injunction, giving the Trump administration the green light to end TPS for Venezuelans. This reverses Biden-era protections and allows for immediate deportation of those affected.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem terminated the program in February, arguing it was no longer in the national interest. The Biden administration had extended TPS protections for Venezuelans in 2021 amid the country’s economic collapse.
In March, Judge Edward Chen temporarily blocked the move, criticizing the abrupt termination as “unprecedented” and potentially driven by negative stereotypes.
TPS, created in the 1990s, allows migrants from unsafe countries to stay and work legally in the U.S. It’s granted in 18-month increments and shields recipients from deportation if their home country is deemed dangerous.
While Trump imposed sanctions on Venezuela’s Maduro regime during his first term, he initially declined to offer TPS. Instead, he enacted Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) in 2021, granting temporary deportation relief for Venezuelans for 18 months.
Now, with TPS protections on the chopping block, Disney’s Venezuelan employees may soon be forced out of their jobs — and possibly the country.