Source: Retail Dive
Date: 17th June 2025

The tension between trade restrictions and immigration enforcement hampers efforts to restore U.S. apparel manufacturing.

As the U.S. seeks to reshape its apparel manufacturing sector through tariffs, it faces an internal conflict with immigration policies that threaten to decimate the domestic workforce.

Tariff hikes on imports from countries like China have prompted many U.S. retailers to shift sourcing, but few have shown interest in increasing their reliance on domestic garment production.

This is largely due to the industry’s reliance on immigrant labor, especially in cities like Los Angeles, where the textile sector employs thousands of workers, many of whom are undocumented.

Immigrant workers have long been essential to U.S. apparel manufacturing, performing labor-intensive tasks such as cutting and sewing, which are difficult to automate.

However, the ongoing immigration crackdown, including raids on factories, has disrupted this workforce, leaving factories struggling to fill positions.

The U.S. government’s aggressive immigration policies have created a paradox, where efforts to reshore garment manufacturing conflict with the need for an affordable and available labor force.

Despite this, industry advocates argue that tariffs alone will not revitalize domestic apparel manufacturing.

While some reform efforts are underway, the low wages and harsh working conditions in U.S. garment factories remain significant barriers to growth. +

Even with a sizable workforce, without the proper protections and investments, the future of U.S.-based apparel manufacturing is uncertain, as the industry’s challenges are compounded by policy contradictions.