Construction projects delayed as workers fear Border Patrol arrests in N.C.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Construction projects are being delayed across North Carolina after Customs and Border Protection’s “Operation Charlotte’s Web” led to more than 300 immigration-related arrests from Charlotte to Raleigh. 

Hundreds of construction workers have been calling out of work in Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro and Winston-Salem out of fear of possible deportation, according to Dave Simpson, the president and CEO of Carolinas AGC.

Jorge Perez, the owner of Tree Amigos, had to pause all of his remodeling projects last week because he did not have enough employees to keep the jobs running.

“We’ve had a lot of people that called out,” Perez said. “Some of them have called out for two weeks. People are afraid. They don’t want to go to anything to do with being outside and being at risk of getting detained and getting deported. Even the people that have papers, they don’t want to deal with that either just because they’re the wrong color with the wrong face.”

The construction industry plays a pivotal role in North Carolina’s economy. It brought $41.4 billion to the state in 2024. Immigrants play a big role as well. According to the North Carolina Department of Commerce, 29% of the state’s construction workers were not born in the U.S. as of 2023.

“The construction industry depends on immigrant labor,” Lissette Velez, the CEO of Velez Strategies, said.

Velez works with minority-owned construction businesses. She said CBP’s arrests come at a time when the construction industry is experiencing a labor shortage“This is going to have a ripple effect that is going to replicate and impact the whole industry, our community and small businesses,” Velez said.

As some workers start to return to work, Perez is focused on doing what he can to help.

“We’re locking all the doors,” he said. “We go to the store for them. If they want to get something to eat, we have to do that.”

Perez is prepared to do this for as long as he needs, but he does not know if his workers will ever feel safe.

“We’re trying to make sure that we keep the guys a little less worried because they’re never going to stop worrying about, ‘What if they get pulled over? What if they show up at one of the job sites?’” he said.

About 370 people have been arrested in North Carolina by Customs and Border Protection since officers arrived earlier this month.

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