LAFAYETTE, La. — A wave of immigration raids at both the national and local levels are impacting industries such as hotels, farms, and construction sites.
These raids are sparking concerns about the potential impact on the future of these industries and the economies they support.
A local roofing contractor, who chose to remain anonymous due to fears of retaliation and to protect his workers, wanted to share his opinion with the ongoing situation.
"I did have one of our painters get picked up recently, and sometimes my guys are scared. They stop going to work when they get notified that ICE is out and about," he said.
According to the American Immigration Council, immigrants comprise 6.5% of Louisiana's labor force, with 15.8% supporting the state's construction workforce.
The concern is that targeting job sites could have significant ripple effects on the economy. President Donald Trump even suggested because of this, he may roll back on these raids at certain work areas.
President Trump recently addressed the situation on social media via Truth Social, suggesting shift in policy.
"Our great farmers and people in the hotel and leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long-time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace," he wrote.
See his post below:
The contractor expressed concerns about the broader impact these raids may have on other similar industries.
"It's gonna drive the price up, quality down, and production time will increase by a lot," he said. "It's no secret that immigrants are very good at what they do, and that's why we have such a high employment rate within construction because that's what we are looking for."
Despite the Trump administration's directive to possibly pause raids at farms, hotels, restaurants, and meatpacking plants, the construction industry remains vulnerable.
For many in the industry, immigrant workers are considered the backbone of their operations not just in Acadiana but all over the nation.
"Majority of Acadiana and everywhere else is built on the back of immigrants that we are targeting, and I think it's gonna backfire," he said. "No one is going to be happy once it's all set and done."
KATC spoke with Tala Immigration Law regarding the rights of companies and workers when immigration officials enter work zones or private businesses.
For employers, immigration officers must have a valid judicial warrant signed by a judge to enter non-public areas of a business. Without this warrant, employers have the right to deny entry. However, officers may enter public areas (like a lobby or storefront) without a warrant. Employers also have the right to not consent to searches of private areas or access to employee records unless presented with proper legal documentation (such as a subpoena or judicial warrant). For workers, regardless of immigration status, they have the right to:
- Remain silent and not disclose their immigration status.
- Refuse to sign documents without speaking to an attorney.
- Request legal representation if detained or questioned.
- Be protected from discrimination or retaliation by their employer for asserting these rights.
