September Jobs Report: Belated Employment Data Show How Attacks on Immigrant Workers Harm Job Growth

Nationwide—Following the government shutdown that halted the release of critical employment and economic data, the Bureau of Labor Statistics today released data from the month of September. An analysis reveals that the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4% in September, while 7.6 million workers were unemployed. Just 119,000 jobs were added in September, a sign of continued weakness in the labor market.

“One reason job growth is slowing is that 1.6 million immigrant workers have left the U.S. labor force in the last six months—a direct result of the Trump administration’s cruel and economically destructive policies of mass detention and deportation,” said Rebecca Dixon, president and CEO of the National Employment Law Project (NELP). “Attacks on immigrant workers and families disrupt our communities and weaken the entire U.S. economy, harming workers of all backgrounds. Every worker, regardless of their immigration status, should be able to live and work with dignity and respect.”

The rapidly rising number of immigration arrests, detentions, and deportations under the Trump administration is devastating to immigrant families and communities. Yet the economic pain is not limited to immigrants: Researchers also find that anti-immigrant crackdowns will cause millions of U.S.-born workers to lose their jobs because of disrupted business operations and a loss of consumer demand. A recent study by Ben Zipperer at the Economic Policy Institute concludes that if the administration accomplishes its aim of deporting 4 million people over four years the result will be 2.6 million fewer employed U.S.-born workers in addition to 3.3 million fewer employed immigrants.

The massive immigration raid at a Hyundai-LG battery plant in Georgia in early September illustrates the widespread damage inflicted by enforcement efforts. NELP partner Migrant Equity Southeast highlighted the ripple effects of the raid on their local communities in a recent statement: “When our immigrant neighbors do not feel safe to fully participate in our communities, we lose important members of our social fabric, businesses lose workers and customers, and our local economies suffer.”

The unemployment rate for Black women has been rising steadily over several months, from 5.8% in June to 7.5% in September—a troubling sign for employment more broadly. The unemployment rate for Black workers overall in September was 7.5%, nearly twice the rate for white workers (3.8%). Unemployment among Latinx workers was 5.5%. Among Asian workers the unemployment rate was 4.4%. Continuing disparities in unemployment rates are a result of structural racism in the U.S. labor market, including occupational segregation.

As destructive policies continue to hinder job growth, strengthening unemployment insurance for all workers is more important than ever. Congress must enact The Unemployment Insurance Modernization and Recession Readiness Act, sponsored Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Representative Don Beyer (D-VA). The bill sets nationwide standards for UI, mandating that states offer at least 26 weeks of unemployment benefits, raising benefit amounts to replace a greater share of workers’ prior earnings, and increasing coverage for part-time workers, temp workers, and workers whose earnings fluctuate over time. The bill also establishes a new, federally funded Jobseekers Allowance to support jobless workers who would not otherwise be covered by unemployment insurance and modernizes the Extended Benefits program that makes additional weeks of unemployment benefits available in times of high unemployment.

State policymakers across the country should also act to improve their state unemployment insurance systems to better support workers and the economy. Policymakers at all levels should act to ensure that immigrant workers are not excluded from unemployment insurance coverage.