Trump Deportation Surge Forces Employers to Raise Wages in Agriculture, Nursing Homes and Meatpacking

Brookings economist Wendy Edelberg says President Trump’s tighter immigration enforcement and termination of parole/TPS programs are reducing migrant labor and pushing up wages in sectors such as agriculture, home health/nursing homes, and meatpacking. Employers (including JBS and nursing homes) report immediate staffing gaps and have boosted pay, referral bonuses, and union concessions; government data show short-term real wage gains for native-born workers while macro GDP effects remain modest. This story fits an accelerating, multi‑state pattern of enforcement-driven labor rebalancing and is recommended as a featured publish with follow-up.