On the front side of a horse racing track, one finds bright, decadent hats, pastel suits and $22 mint juleps.
And on the backside of the track, one finds hundreds of workers, primarily immigrants, washing and exercising muscular thoroughbreds at 3 a.m. on the soft, thick track.
"If we couldn't have an immigrant workforce on the backside, I don't know how horse racing exists," said Dale Romans, a racehorse trainer in Kentucky. "We can't send them home and ask them to come back. There's nobody to do the work when they're gone."
Horse racing generated some $36 billion in 2023, the latest figure available, and supports nearly half a million jobs, according to the American Horse Council. It's considered one of the oldest sports in America. Beyond the racetrack itself, getting one horse to race is itself a multimillion-dollar endeavor, from the training and the grooms to the feed and the farms.
That effort primarily relies on H-2B visas to get workers. But there are also plenty of workers without visas or other legal status, industry experts say.
Immigration enforcement largely left the industry untouched during the first Trump administration. Industry leaders say that's because President Trump recognized the sizable impact of immigrant labor and catered to his agriculture voting base, which tends to be largely Republican.
No specific figures are available for horse racing, but estimates show that some 42% of hired crop farmworkers, for example, don't have legal status. Estimates are even higher among workforces that deal with animals or livestock.
This time, industry observers aren't sure they'll again be able to avoid a larger crackdown.
"We have concerns of [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] coming in and sweeping people away," Romans said. "I've worked with immigrant workers my whole life, and I've never seen people under the stress they're going through for the last six months."
Tougher on enforcement in second term
Employers and industry representatives say they see a difference between Trump's immigration enforcement during his first term and that during the start of his second.
During his first term, his administration focused on worksite enforcement, boasting record I-9 inspections — though efforts then stalled with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Immigration agents in 2018 ended up pausing raids in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., for the racing season — only to conduct a worksite operation afterward that resulted in backstretch workers' arrests.
Now, industry leaders feel that more such raids are likelier, as Trump administration officials came into office with the goal of focusing even more on worksite enforcement.
"The fact of the matter is that I am a little bit worried — but there's still part of me that believes that this president, his hotels, his businesses — he's relied on the same labor that we do," said Tom Rooney, president of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.
Trump's flagship hotels and golf courses have used temporary seasonal labor.
But the Trump administration has held its tough-on-immigration approach even when discussing the reliance that several industries have on workers without legal status.
During an interview with Fox Noticias last month, Trump said he wanted to make it easier to secure workers for farms and hotels, both of which use forms of temporary work visas and have a sizable percentage of workers without legal status.
"If a farmer wants to give recommendations to people, we're going to be very soothing," Trump said. But he added that ultimately he wants people to self-deport.
Trump has also suggested that employers like farmers may be able to write a letter recommending that specific individuals be returned to the U.S. after being deported, according to remarks at an April Cabinet meeting. But so far, there are apparently no specific plans to secure the workforce as a whole.
Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse, who represents central Washington state, questioned the secretary of homeland security at a recent hearing about any new plans to protect workers of key businesses.
But Kristi Noem, the head of the Department of Homeland Security, said the administration's focus is on encouraging people to leave the country.
"President Trump has been very clear that the people who are here illegally need to go home," Noem said. She said that then people have a chance to "come back to America, the right way," though it isn't always clear how that would work.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment on any possible plans to assist employers.
Other programs that afforded people legal status to work in the U.S. — including temporary protected status, the parole process for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans, and the ability to seek asylum and refugee statuses — have been curtailed by the administration.
Horse racing employees are feeling the pressure
Rooney, the association president, said some trainers report that usually reliable workers aren't coming to work — though that hasn't halted business yet. Other workers stay inside the tracks' perimeters, for fear of potential raids.
Racetracks, like other industries, are preparing their workers and trainers for what to do if there are encounters with immigration officials.
The California Horse Racing Board issued a memo at the end of April providing guidance to all staff.
"If a subpoena or a warrant is provided, you and your supervisor must consult with the department's legal office before taking any further action," the memo states. "Do not permit access to restricted areas or release information until legal counsel has reviewed the situation."
Since February, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has issued more than 1,600 notices of inspection to employers, which kicks off the process of checking that employees are legally allowed to work in the U.S.; the agency separately audits companies found in violation. At least 1,400 people have been arrested at worksite operations, according to an ICE spokesperson.
Worksite investigations and arrests have varied by industry, including in construction, manufacturing and other businesses.
Employers say they need immigrant workers
Trainers told NPR that they face consistent workforce shortages and struggle to find domestic workers to wake up before dawn to care for and train the horses.
It's a demand for labor felt across seasonal industries, including in agriculture, hospitality, manufacturing and entertainment.
"There's a reason why we bring all these people in: to actually make the machine of the United States work," Rooney said. "If you take away that labor force, then you're really going to be putting cogs in that machine that it's not going to be able to work."
Trump has argued that voters elected him with a mandate to crack down on illegal immigration and deport more people in the U.S. without legal status.
But in horse racing, many still believe they may be left alone because of their industry's economic contribution and its reliance on immigrant workers.
"We may have a false sense of security," Izzy Trejo, executive director of the New Mexico Racing Commission, said about the tracks in his state. He said the horse racing industry in New Mexico is particularly facing a labor shortage, even with immigrant labor, as higher-paying jobs and better working conditions can be found elsewhere.
"They're living in the environment, dust, grime, lack of climate control," Trejo said about workers in the industry. He described some housing at New Mexico's tracks as essentially in the same stalls as the horses use, with makeshift flooring out of pallets.
Will Velie is an Oklahoma-based lawyer who specializes in immigration law in horse racing.
He likes to walk around the tracks early in the mornings and pass out hats that say "emigración para caballerangos" — emigration for horsemen.
Tucked inside is a phone number; many workers call with questions about how to receive a work visa, how to turn that visa into a green card or how to achieve any legal status at all. He also meets with workers in the kitchens on the backside of the tracks.
"We go through all the questions, and about 20 or 30 percent of the time, there is something we can do," Velie said. "If there's not, we just say be careful — don't drink and drive, don't fight with your spouse — and pray for the amnesty."
300x250 Ad
300x250 Ad