Labor Department data show the foreign-born workforce declined by 700,000 over the past year, reducing its share of the U.S. labor force as employers face a smaller pool of imported labor.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The U.S. labor force is becoming more native-born as President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement policies begin reshaping the makeup of the American workforce.
Labor Department data released Thursday showed the number of foreign-born people in the labor force fell by 700,000 over the past year, declining from 32.6 million in June 2025 to 31.9 million in June 2026.
The foreign-born civilian population also declined, falling by 571,000 from 49.1 million to 48.6 million.
The drop marks a reversal from the labor market trends of recent years, when high immigration levels during the Biden administration helped expand the foreign-born workforce. The latest figures suggest that Trump’s border policies and immigration enforcement efforts are beginning to reduce that labor supply.
The decline was especially sharp among foreign-born men.
The foreign-born male civilian population fell by 1.14 million over the year. The foreign-born male labor force dropped by 970,000, while foreign-born male employment declined by 812,000.
Foreign-born women followed a different pattern. Their civilian population increased by 568,000, their labor force grew by 271,000, and their employment rose by 305,000.
The contrast suggests the administration’s immigration crackdown may be affecting male-heavy sectors more strongly than industries with larger numbers of foreign-born women, including child care and health care.
The Labor Department does not separate illegal immigrants, temporary visa holders, lawful permanent residents, recent immigrants, long-term immigrants, naturalized citizens or other categories in its foreign-born labor data. All are counted together as “foreign born.”
The decline in foreign-born labor force participation, population and employment is likely being driven by illegal immigrants leaving the country and fewer new unauthorized arrivals entering the workforce.
Native-born labor force trends also shifted during the same period.
The native-born labor force fell by 445,000 over the past year to 138.3 million, largely reflecting retirements among older Americans. At the same time, the native-born civilian population increased by more than 2.1 million.
Native-born employment showed a gender divide similar to the foreign-born numbers. Native-born male employment fell by 962,000, while native-born female employment increased by 308,000.
The combined effect is a labor market with weaker overall labor-force growth but a larger native-born share.
The foreign-born share of the U.S. labor force fell from about 19.0% in June 2025 to 18.7% in June 2026.
That shift could have important consequences for workers and employers. For years, many businesses benefited from large inflows of foreign labor that expanded the available workforce and reduced pressure to compete for workers already in the United States.
With that trend now reversing, employers may need to depend more on Americans already in the country. That could require more focus on worker retention, higher pay and productivity improvements rather than relying on a growing supply of imported labor.
The broader June jobs report showed the unemployment rate falling to 4.2%, indicating fewer workers who want jobs are unemployed.
The foreign-born unemployment rate, which is not seasonally adjusted, dropped to 3.6%. That decline was driven partly by a lower participation rate, meaning a smaller share of the foreign-born population is actively working or looking for work.
The latest labor data show that Trump’s immigration policies are not only affecting border enforcement and deportations but also changing the composition of the U.S. workforce. As the foreign-born labor pool contracts, the American labor market is becoming more reliant on native-born workers.
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