CHICAGO — One of the key promises President Donald Trump made during his 2024 campaign was to “crack down on illegal immigration.”
On day one of his term, the president signed several executive orders that called for increased immigration enforcement, potential travel bans, enhanced deportation priorities, increased scrutiny during the travel visa process, and more.
The administration’s immigration policy has made it more challenging for businesses, including industrial laundries, to retain and hire foreign-born employees.
After hearing from several laundry operators about the topic, American Laundry News examined some of the policy changes that were enacted, their immediate effects, and how industrial laundries are handling the challenges.
(Note: This article is for informational purposes only. For advice on your specific situation, consult your attorney of choice.)
INDUSTRIAL LAUNDRY INSIGHTS
To get an inside look at how the administration’s immigration policies are affecting industrial laundry operations, American Laundry News contacted two representatives familiar with current immigration and employing foreign-born workers.
Chris Welch is president of Prudential Overall Supply based in Irvine, California.
Catalina Dongo in Los Angeles is senior vice president of human resources for UniFirst Corp. Its corporate headquarters are in Wilmington, Massachusetts.
How prevalent is the employment of staff with foreign origins in U.S. industrial laundries?
WELCH: For Prudential, we average around 30% of our total employee population, with higher rates amongst our production teams.
Laundry is a universal language, with many jobs requiring limited initial skill sets to perform, and not speaking English is a minor or non-barrier to entry. Industrial laundry is also a great industry for individuals with talent and drive to promote within and make a career out of.
Prudential looks to develop talent at all levels, and promoting from within is part of the principles of our organization.
DONGO: I would say it’s quite prevalent across the industrial laundry sector and many other industries that are labor-intensive. In our entire workforce, we have a large immigrant population, especially in our production roles. We have a lot of first-generation immigrants or individuals who come from immigrant backgrounds, second generation, but first-generation immigrants are quite prevalent. I am a first-generation immigrant, and I would say it’s not unique to us.
In general, how have the new administration’s immigration policies affected the foreign-born labor pool in the U.S.?
DONGO: The biggest impact that we have seen across the industry is coming from the ending of several temporary status programs, or TPS programs. These changes have created challenges for many of our U.S. employees who were previously working legally under these programs. When these protections ended, it left many in uncertain situations. They were either left in limbo or went from being in the country legally, being able to live and work here legally, and then, suddenly, that protection was gone and as per the law, could not remain employed.
In terms of hiring, we definitely see a shrinking population applying for our production jobs in particular. Some parts of the country are more affected than others.
Then, with our current employees, what you see is an increased level of anxiety. Even if everybody’s OK, their family hasn’t been affected by these new policies, you do see a level of anxiety. You have a lot of people choosing to go back to their country of origin.
WELCH: I certainly can’t speak for the country, but at Prudential, it has minimal impact. We have always been diligent in using the appropriate resources to validate the status of hired employees. The most significant change has been to current employees who are DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) or TPS status. We have partnered those employees impacted with our labor attorney to try and find the right path forward for them, giving them all the support we can within the law.
What can laundry operators do to work within the new policies and help their foreign-born employees?
DONGO: From an actual policy or being able to help them obtain a different status, there really aren’t many options for operators and companies in our industry. Some other sectors, such as leisure, hotels, tourism, farming, may have a little bit more in terms of legal avenues, but sectors such as ours, there aren’t really any legal routes to my knowledge.
What laundries can do is offer these employees some flexibility when they need to go to legal appointments, and provide a stable and supportive work environment, treating them as the essential workers that they are.
WELCH: Having a long history of complying with the existing law certainly helps. Continuing to react to and understand policy changes as they are made, sometimes frequently, is a must.
Providing legal resources, where applicable, at the company’s cost goes a long way in demonstrating the commitment of the organization to each individual. Continuing to provide a safe and welcoming environment to everyone helps us achieve our goals.
What will be the long-term effect of these policies on laundry labor, and how can operators make plans to remain fully staffed?
WELCH: (Over the) long term, the industry will move toward more automation and the introduction of cobots [collaborative robots] and robots as the cost of labor continues to rise due to reduced supply. Being a top-tier employer with a strong culture, benefits and career opportunities will help with the retention of quality employees.
DONGO: I think the long-term outlook is that, regardless of immigration policy changes, the labor market continues to get tighter, and I think we’re going to have to adapt. We should focus on long-term strategies, such as investing in automation to enhance efficiency, and offering competitive wages and additional benefits to attract domestic talent.
I really think retention is key, not just hiring, because hiring is only going to get tougher. Supporting, valuing and retaining the employees we do have is the best long-term solution.
Do you have any final thoughts to share about current immigration policies and industrial laundry labor?
DONGO: It’s important that we remain aware that our employees from immigrant backgrounds are going through really difficult times and keep that in mind as we navigate the day-to-day with them, we stay flexible, as I mentioned, if they need to go to legal appointments, etc.
Looking ahead, what I hope for is that there is more thoughtful immigration reform that balances the needs of our country with the realities of the labor market. In the meantime, we need to continue leading with empathy, agility, and a strong commitment to our people.
Click HERE to read part 1 for an introduction to policy changes, and what they mean for businesses.
For part 2 about the importance for employers to fill out forms properly and know how to work with ICE, click HERE.
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].
