(CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA) — Border Patrol agents arrested more than 425 people in the Charlotte area by December 3, 2025, a sweep that construction workers and contractors said quickly emptied job sites and cut off paychecks across North Carolina.
Fear of arrest and deportation kept immigrant laborers home in the days after the early December operation known as Charlotte’s Webb, with builders reporting stalled projects and missed deadlines in Charlotte and Raleigh. North Carolina’s construction sector relies heavily on immigrant workers, who make up one in four people in the industry, and contractors said the sudden drop in crews translated into immediate losses for families living week to week.
Scope and immediate effects
Federal data pointed to a broad reach. Of the first 130 cases reviewed after the crackdown, only 44 involved people with criminal records, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Community groups said they tracked arrests of working-class immigrants with no criminal histories, including construction and landscaping workers.
Siembra NC documented dozens of such arrests statewide as the operation expanded its footprint beyond a single neighborhood.
Worksites in Charlotte were hit directly. Witnesses reported arrests on November 17, 2025, at construction sites in the Green Tree neighborhood on Brookridge Lane in South Charlotte and off Moores Chapel Road in west Mecklenburg County.
At one Charlotte site, witnesses said four people were detained after attempting to flee, an account that workers and contractors said spread quickly through immigrant communities and set off a wave of absences.
Impact on projects and crews
Developers and contractors reported immediate, visible effects:
- David Ravin, CEO of Northwood Ravin, said sites that normally had over 100 workers were operating with fewer than 12, describing some locations as nearly empty.
- Ravin pointed to the Queensbridge Collective project in South End as a visible example: crews that contractors expected to see each morning suddenly did not show up.
- In Raleigh, a contractor with 23 years of experience halted operations for nearly two weeks, leaving $60,000 in contracts unrealized. He said his team of 12 Hispanic workers stayed away during the stoppage.
- Some job sites began a slow return after about a week, but the mood remained cautious as workers watched for signs of more arrests before committing to show up.
Contractors emphasized how quickly a short-lived wave of absences can ripple through schedules, inspections, and subcontractor availability—especially on large projects where multiple trades must overlap.
Human and community consequences
The contractor in Raleigh also served as a pastor, delivering food to affected families as paychecks disappeared. The rapid loss of income forced households to stretch savings or rely on informal networks.
Workers described the fear as rooted in what they were seeing on the ground. One anonymous plumber said:
“They say they’re going after criminals, people with records, but that’s not true. They’re coming after us, the working class.”
Siembra NC and other groups said the arrests they documented included people who were part of the routine workforce, a point advocates emphasized as they tried to connect families to support and legal guidance.
Wider economic and policy context
The disruption landed on an industry already strained by labor gaps. North Carolina’s construction industry generated $41.4 billion in 2024, and the broader market faces a national shortage of over 200,000 workers.
Buddy Hughes, president of NAHB, tied immigration enforcement directly to housing costs and supply:
“Mass deportation is not the answer. With a shortage of more than 200,000 workers in the construction industry, any disruption to the labor force would raise housing costs, limit supply and worsen the nation’s affordability crisis.”
Contractors warned that even brief labor interruptions can increase costs by forcing rescheduling of trades and equipment, delaying inspections, and complicating contracts.
The crackdown also fit a broader shift in enforcement since January 2025 under the Trump administration, which has intensified enforcement by rolling back flexible guidance and increasing detentions.
Local government and community response
In Charlotte, elected officials moved to respond in practical ways. The Charlotte City Council voted to boost funding for immigrant-support nonprofits after community groups reported a surge in requests for help following the Charlotte’s Webb operation.
Community groups and contractors reported that the immediate economic hit was often concentrated on crews performing the hardest physical work—framing, drywall, roofing, and concrete—where a sudden drop in labor can stop progress entirely.
Notable dates, figures, and locations
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Arrests in Charlotte area (by Dec 3, 2025) | 425+ |
| Initial DHS case review | 130 cases; 44 with criminal records |
| Notable raid date | November 17, 2025 |
| Construction industry value (NC, 2024) | $41.4 billion |
| National construction labor shortage | 200,000+ workers |
| Example site staffing drop (Northwood Ravin) | From 100+ to <12 workers |
| Raleigh contractor losses | $60,000 in unrealized contracts |
| Raleigh contractor experience | 23 years; team of 12 Hispanic workers |
Ongoing concerns and takeaways
Developers and subcontractors said the fear extended beyond those detained, affecting workers who had not been approached by agents but decided it was safer to stay home. That uncertainty left builders balancing timelines and contracts with the reality that many workers believed a visible return could carry personal risk.
Ravin described a “wait-and-see” approach that builders said was becoming common, even as supervisors tried to reassure crews that they needed them back to keep projects moving.
DHS figures underscored that the arrests did not focus solely on people with criminal histories, a dynamic contractors said made it harder to predict who might be targeted and fueled broader fear on job sites.
Final note
North Carolina’s reliance on immigrant labor in construction meant the effects were visible quickly: quiet sites, missing crews, and an immediate workplace crisis stemming from a federal immigration action. For some workers, the choice came down to a day’s pay versus perceived risk, a tension summed up by the anonymous plumber’s comment:
“They say they’re going after criminals, people with records, but that’s not true. They’re coming after us, the working class.”
The Charlotte’s Webb operation resulted in 425 arrests, predominantly affecting North Carolina’s construction workforce. With many arrested individuals lacking criminal records, fear has emptied major job sites in Charlotte and Raleigh. Industry leaders emphasize that these disruptions threaten the state’s $41.4 billion construction sector and worsen the national housing crisis by reducing labor supply and increasing project costs for developers and families alike.
