Immigration

Our economy is very dependent on foreign labor. Indeed, most of our workforce growth since 1990 has come from immigration, a trend that is expected to continue for at least the next 20 years. How these workers are employed, therefore, will have important implications for American economic health, as well as for national unity and social stability.

America’s employment-based immigration system is broken. The programs for admitting foreign workers for temporary and permanent jobs are rigid, cumbersome, and inefficient; do too little to protect the wages and working conditions of workers (foreign or domestic); do not respond very well to employers’ needs; and give almost no attention to adapting the number and characteristics of foreign workers to domestic labor shortages. The United States could benefit enormously from an immigration system that is more responsive to broader economic conditions.

 

Publications

Network Exclusive

Deportation Impacts Talking Points

  • July 11, 2025

State message guidance to accompany new EPI report “Trump’s deportation agenda will destroy millions of jobs”

Message guidance for state advocates — NOT FOR PUBLICATION

Note to EARN groups and state labor partners: 

This resource is being provided by EPI to EARN network groups and close partners in conjunction with publication of the new EPI report  Trump’s deportation agenda will destroy millions of jobs. It draws on data from the new report along with other recent EPI and EARN network analysis of the state impacts of Trump’s inhumane, radical, anti-worker attacks on immigrant communities (see fuller list of recent publications at end of this document).  

The new report includes state-level data estimating overall and construction employment impacts of Trump’s deportation agenda in Figure B., and in Appendix Tables 1 and 2. 

We encourage you to also consider sharing content from EPI’s Social Media Toolkit accompanying the new report.