Updated June 12, 2025 at 7:57 AM MDT
The Trump administration is ramping up its immigration arrests and deportations. Recent raids in Los Angeles' fashion district and at Home Depot parking lots in Southern California suggest that Immigration and Customs Enforcement are targeting people in their workplace.
"You're going to see more work site enforcement than you've ever seen in the history of this nation," said Tom Homan, the White House border czar, in remarks to reporters recently. "We're going to flood the zone."
Industries that rely on workers who are in the country without legal status, like agriculture, restaurants and construction, are taking notice.
The Pew Research Center said, as of 2017, 12% of workers in the construction industry were immigrants in the country with authorization. In 2021, the Center for American Progress estimated that among construction laborers, 23% don't have legal status.
Morning Edition spoke Tuesday with George Carrillo, co-founder and CEO of the Hispanic Construction Council, as protests against ICE raids unfolded in Los Angeles and after President Trump ordered Marines and additional National Guard troops to the city.
"The people that you see building our homes, the ones that are paving the roads and our bridges, 50% of that skilled workforce is Hispanics," he said.
Carrillo has had careers in the Marines, in law enforcement, and in state government.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
A Martínez: To what extent does the construction industry rely on workers who don't have legal status?
George Carrillo: That number is actually relatively high. We estimate somewhere between 700,000 to 1 million people. What people really need to understand is we have a workforce shortage in this country, period. Now, if you take out about a million Hispanics that are undocumented, it would devastate the construction industry, and not just that. Critical infrastructure, clean drinking water, sewage. Who's going to build our homes? We're about 4.5 million homes behind. All roads lead to construction. If we fail, the broader economy and our way of life dramatically suffers.
Martínez: So are you seeing these effects in the data yet, though, or is it more of a feeling?
Carrillo: So it's in the data, because we know we don't have the workforce. We know that we're behind. We know that we're struggling with building homes right now. Now, when we think about the immigration crackdowns, it's not making things any better. People aren't showing up to work. A lot of people thought, okay, they're going to go after criminals. But look at what happened in Tallahassee. We saw hardworking individuals on a construction job site, and they took away a hundred workers. That is going to devastate that project.
Martínez: I'm wondering how we got to this point as a country where the construction industry is reliant on people who are here without documentation instead of just maybe hiring Americans who are here legally?
Carrillo: Well, I think that if Americans really wanted to do the work, then they would be doing it. And the other thing is, too, we have a historical, low unemployment rate. So we don't have enough people in this country to do what we need to do. We can't just shut the door and say America can be self-sustainable. We're just not there yet.
Martínez: You were in the Marines. You were also in law enforcement. So with that in mind, as well as your perspective on the industry, the construction industry, how would you want the administration to think about immigration?
Carrillo: If you really want to go after criminals, then go after criminals. But right now, the administration is going about it all wrong. Basically right now, what it's doing is that, if you're brown in America, you have to prove your status. I've never had to prove my status. I don't even know what that means. Like, how do I, as an American citizen, as a veteran, as a former police officer, how do I prove that I'm an American citizen?
So let's talk about a real policy. Let's talk about a work visa for construction workers that can stay here. You know, for undocumented individuals, why don't we build a work visa, with restitution, make them taxpayers, help out the construction industry? I believe that's a win for everyone.
Martínez: Have you really thought about what you might say if you were approached by immigration officials?
Carrillo: Yeah, I've had that conversation with my family quite a few times. I carry my passport with me at all times, if I'm leaving the house now. I have good explanations for the tattoos that I have on my body, because they can be viewed as gang tattoos, maybe. On one arm, I've got my police badge on there. On the other arm, I have a United States Marine Corps thing on there. And I want to make sure that they understand that that's me. That identifies me. That does not identify a gang.
Martínez: What is your view of Marines and the National Guard taking on a role in Los Angeles right now?
Carrillo: I feel really bad for them right now, because, as a Marine myself, this is not what we're designed for. Right now, here in the United States, we're not in wartime. The local law enforcement can handle what's going on in California. There's no reason to send these very young, inexperienced Marines into this type of setting, when they're not trained for that type of setting. The rules of engagement have not been clear from [the Department of Justice] or from the president. So, we are really putting our Marines in a very dangerous place in this country, because they're being ordered to do so, in a very unfair, unlawful way by the president.
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