Immigration: Immigration Law Enforce¬ment Could Translate to Staffing Opportunities
- Stringent immigration law enforcement may boost temporary help services growth in a stagnant labor market by creating labor shortages.
- In sectors where undocumented workers match or exceed temporary help services employees, companies may turn to documented temporary workers to fill gaps.
- Restrictions on skilled migration could deepen shortages in service sectors, presenting opportunities for temporary help services to attract new clients and business.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 reduced income taxes for most Americans, translating to wage gains for U.S. workers—including temporary employees. Rising inflation and interest rates as the coronavirus pandemic began also boosted compensation for workers, including temporary employees, yet their taxable wages were capped by the TCJA. Although robust wage gains have also driven a broader slowdown in job openings and hiring in the labor market, the TCJA enabled the temporary help services industry to remain an attractive avenue of employment for millions of workers, likely supporting a concurrent record boom in industry employment. Most provisions of the TCJA were set to expire after 2025, but the July 2025 budget reconciliation bill extended many of the tax cuts—which should benefit the temporary help services industry by helping revive demand for workers and employment.