The Economic and Social Costs of Worksite Raids on Local Communities

By Cristobal Ramon and Gabrielle Berger 

Recent discussions about mass deportations have revived proposals to conduct worksite raids to support these efforts. Worksite raids, which have a history dating back to the 1980s, involve ICE agents entering and arresting individuals in worksites suspected of employing large number of undocumented immigrants. 

Worksite raids serve as potent, localized examples of the negative impacts of mass deportations. In addition to removing workers who play a central role in their local workforce, they leave children — including U.S. citizen ones — facing mental health and financial peril as ICE separates them from their parents. These raids can also lead to civil rights violations when ICE arrests U.S. citizens based on their appearance. 

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A History of Worksite Immigration Enforcement since 2000 

Since 2000, presidential administrations have used worksites raids and other enforcement mechanisms to deter employers from hiring undocumented individuals, a practice which the Immigration Reform and Control Act made illegal in 1986 

George W. Bush’s administration marked the first instance where routine worksite raids became a key strategy of reaching these goals. These “sweepsfocused on sectors with large numbers of undocumented of workers, such as construction, agriculture, and manufacturing, leading to the detention and deportation of thousands of individuals. A notable example is the May 2008 raid in Postville, Iowa where ICE arrested nearly 400 workers. 

The Obama administration shifted tactics, focusing on targeting businesses over individual workers. Rather than carrying out physical raids, the administration pivoted towards “silent raids,” conducting audits of 2,900 employers to identify undocumented workers. These audits resulted in $3 million in fines and to led employers firing thousands of undocumented workers, although they were not deported. 

The Trump and Biden administrations took cues from their respective predecessors. Trump pursued large worksite raids, arresting at least 1,892 individuals between 2017 and 2019, a number that includes 680 individuals arrested in the largest raid since the Postville incident in August 2019. In contrast, the Biden administration issued an October 2021 memorandum ending this practice and relied on ICE audits, similar to the Obama administration. 

The Economic and Social Costs of Worksite Raids 

Worksite raids targeting undocumented immigrants, much like past nationwide enforcement efforts, worksite raids have grave economic, social and civil rights consequences. 

The 2019 Carthage Mississippi raid, involving five agriculture processing plants, highlights some of the economic damages stemming from these raids. One of the targeted locations advertised 100 open positions, jobs previously held by workers consistently employed there. These arrests also impacted local businesses that relied on the plants and their workers, both as suppliers and as steady customers. 

Worksite raids also harm the children of arrested individuals. A 2007 report examining the impacts of such raids on the children of detained individuals found they experienced significant mental and physical trauma due to separation from their parents. The arrest of one or both parents also left families financially vulnerable as their savings and private sources of assistance exhausted within months of these arrests — long before some parents could return to provide for their children. 

A 2019 study and 2022 study examining the effects of worksite raids in 2018 and 2019 noted similar trends. The removal of workers left families in financial dire straits, especially when they had to pay for bonds to release detained family members. Children also experienced similar traumas due to family separations and often assumed caretaker roles for their younger siblings when other adults in the household worked additional hours to make ends meet. 

Worksite raids also result in civil rights violations against U.S. citizens arrested in these actions. In April 2018, immigration authorities raided a meatpacking plant in Bean Station, Tennessee, detaining 97 individuals. Authorities arrested individuals who looked Latino, regardless of their citizenship status or documentation. This generated a lawsuit alleging violations of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. In 2023, the courts ultimately approved a $1 million settlement in favor of the workers. 

Immigration Relief and Legal Pathways — Not Worksite Raids — Can Support Local Economies and the Rule of Law 

Although worksite raids have inflicted lasting damages on communities, it is also important to note that worksite raids also do not deter these employment practices. Reports and studies have shown that increased worksite raids do not lead employers to stop hiring undocumented individuals or adopting measures like E-Verify to assess whether an individual can legally work in the country. In short, worksite raids are one of the least effective uses of the limited resources to ensure employer compliance with the nation’s immigration laws. 

To achieve these goals without damaging local communities, lawmakers should provide a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented individuals to create a stable workforce for industries that rely on their labor. Expanding legal pathways for migration, that provides alternatives to crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, can also help address local labor shortages. For instance, an example seen in Springfield, Ohio where Haitian beneficiaries of such programs strengthened the local workforce. These measures, in addition to securing the border and reallocating resources to address pressing security challenges, can help local communities and economies thrive. 

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