How immigration enforcement is reshaping the Pacific Northwest construction workforce
Construction has always leaned heavily on immigrant labor — nationally, immigrants make up roughly a third of the industry’s workforce, and in trades like drywall, roofing, and plastering that share climbs well past 50%. In 2026, heightened federal immigration enforcement is testing how exposed that labor supply really is, and Oregon and Washington are sitting close to the center of it.
Portland already saw it firsthand
High-profile ICE enforcement actions took place in Portland in June, part of a broader pattern that also touched Los Angeles and, later, Chicago. AGC chief economist Ken Simonson told Construction Dive that despite the visibility of these actions, it’s been surprisingly hard to find contractors who report being directly affected — so far. But Simonson and AGC’s Brian Turmail both flagged 2026 as the year enforcement activity is more likely to escalate, pointing to expanded ICE funding and staffing under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act as reasons the industry may be “only beginning to feel the impact.”
The effect isn’t always a raid — often it’s an empty jobsite
Rather than dramatic worksite sweeps, contractor groups describe a quieter pattern: workers not showing up, either because they’ve already been detained or out of fear that they might be. A joint AGC and National Center for Construction Education and Research survey found that 28% of construction firms experienced workforce disruptions tied to ICE activity within six months, and roughly 10% reported directly losing workers to enforcement action, with another 20% saying their subcontractors lost workers.
The numbers behind the pressure
The scale of the exposure is significant. Immigrants made up a record 26.3% of the construction workforce in 2024 by one estimate, and net immigration into the U.S. has fallen sharply — from 2.7 million for the year ending mid-2024 to 1.3 million in 2025, with some estimates suggesting net negative migration may already be underway. At the same time, the industry needs an estimated 349,000 net new workers in 2026 just to keep up with current demand, a figure expected to climb to 456,000 in 2027 as data center construction accelerates. Layer in a workforce that’s aging — nearly 40% of skilled construction workers are now over 45 — and the labor pipeline is being squeezed from multiple directions at once.
What Oregon and Washington are doing about it
Both states have moved to define how employers must handle ICE activity at the jobsite. Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries adopted permanent rules under WAC 296-128 that took effect March 6, 2026, and pending state legislation (SB 5852) would expand worker protections further. Oregon has taken a similar approach: state law already bars employers from threatening to call ICE as a retaliation tactic, gives employers the right to deny ICE access to non-public work areas absent a judicial warrant, and — under a new 2026 law — requires employers to notify workers within three business days of any federal request to inspect I-9 records.
Oregon’s HB 4089 adds another layer specific to the construction trades: it raises penalties for using unlicensed labor contractors and misusing contractor license numbers, with violations now ranging up to a Class C felony. Combined with immigration-related pressures, the practical effect is a labor market where contractors face tightening scrutiny from two directions — federal immigration enforcement on one side, and state licensing enforcement on the other.
The bottom line for contractors
Economists interviewed by Construction Dive were split on how much of the current slowdown in demand is attributable to immigration policy versus interest rates and tariff uncertainty. But the structural risk is clear enough that industry groups are urging contractors to prepare now — reviewing I-9 practices, designating a trained point of contact for any ICE worksite visit, and understanding the difference between a judicial warrant and an administrative one before an agent shows up asking questions.
Source URL: https://www.constructiondive.com/news/how-immigration-enforcement-will-impact-construction-in-2026/809482/
Source URL: https://www.constructiondive.com/news/immigration-rate-construction-workers-labor-shortage-trades/817865/
Source URL: https://www.archbright.com/blog/washington-and-oregon-immigrant-worker-protections
Source URL: https://ogletree.com/insights-resources/blog-posts/key-takeaways-from-oregons-2026-legislative-session/
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