Farmworkers union says Central California ICE raids continue despite Trump’s pledge
The United Farm Workers union has called on President Donald Trump to stop immigration raids and support comprehensive immigration reform.
Earlier this month, Trump announced a “pause” on raids on agricultural worksites, only to change his position a few days later and reverse the guidance supposedly exempting farms from immigration raids.
Officials of the UFW said they were skeptical of Trump’s intentions to pause the raids because they heard reports of potential sweeps in the Central Valley over Father’s Day weekend.
“We continued to see raids in ICE vehicles in many agricultural areas,” said Teresa Romero, president of UFW.
Romero said the immigrant community, especially farmworkers, remain anxious about ongoing immigration raids.
“We have our deal. We have the Farmworkers Modernization Act, that would solve the problem. That would keep farmworkers here with a path to legalization,” Romeros said. “And it would keep the workforce in agriculture that we need, and the growers will not have to worry about who’s going to be taking their crops.”
About 50% of the 500,000 farmworkers in the state’s multi-billion-dollar ag industry lack legal status to work in the country.
The Farmworkers Modernization Act has been introduced several times, including two times during Trump’s first administration, Romero said.
The bipartisan legislation was reintroduced in May by U.S. Representatives Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-18), Dan Newhouse (R-WA-04), Mike Simpson (R-ID-02), Jim Costa (D-CA-21), David Valadao (R-CA-22), and Adam Gray (D-CA-13).
“Farmworkers are the backbone of the agriculture industry, and ICE should prioritize removing known criminals over the hardworking people who contribute to our communities and the economy,” Valadao said in a statement.
Romero said at least 30 Republicans in Congress support the legislation.
“All they need to do is bring it to the floor, vote on it so they can go to the Senate and, if it passes, he (Trump) would sign it,” Romero said.
“If he (Trump) is charge, he can make that happen,” Romero said. “He can stop these raids immediately.”
When asked if he was hopeful the bill could finally be approve during this congress, Valadao said “farmers, ranchers, and small business owners need consistency to be successful, and I remain committed to continuing conversations with the administration to ensure enforcement focuses on real threats, while also working with my colleagues to fix our broken immigration system.”
With Trump reversing his position, the UFW is now proactively reaching out to farmworkers’ employers with information on how to protect their employees at their worksites and legally limit access by immigration agents.
The UFW published a “No Access to ICE” door/window sign that gives notice to law enforcement and immigration agents about no access to that private property that employers can use.
This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 12:25 PM with the headline "Farmworkers union says Central California ICE raids continue despite Trump’s pledge."
