ICE raids prompt some construction workers to demand hazard pay

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids are not only disrupting work sites, but they are also raising costs for some contractors.

Some subcontracted immigrant workers are demanding extra wages for running the risk of being detained by ICE, according to a Tampa construction company leader quoted in a Reuters report. As a result, the company’s individual daily labor costs have jumped to $400 to $500, up from between $200 and $300 a day, the report says.

Some construction workers, including some with legal status, are in hiding for fear of being detained by ICE, the report says. Whole crews are failing to show up at job sites, the CEO of the National Association of Home Builders says.

Of the roughly 11 million people in the U.S. illegally, about 1.4 million work in construction—more than in any other industry, according to a nonpartisan think tank. A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman says ICE raids help combat dangerous activities such as labor trafficking and exploitation.