President Trump’s immigration crackdown is starting to show up in and around the parking lots of Home Depot HD 0.74% stores across the country.
The usual crowds of day laborers have begun to dwindle, scared off by increasing and unannounced immigration raids. These laborers often lack legal status in the U.S.
Outside a Home Depot in northern New Jersey on Tuesday, a handful of people—far fewer than would have come a few months ago—waited for contractors to come by. At two locations in Los Angeles, the few men who showed up were told by store security to stay on the sidewalk. And at three Home Depot stores around Houston, there were no laborers in sight.
The Trump administration’s sweeping deportations threaten a symbiotic and contentious relationship that stretches back decades. The laborers provide a service for Home Depot’s customers—contractors and homeowners—in need of help on construction projects. Officially, Home Depot doesn’t endorse the activities.
