DC
@dcosta.bsky.social
Researching law and data at the intersection of immigration and labor for EPI.org
Visiting Scholar at UC Davis, Global Migration Center.
[Views expressed are personal]
Stop the wars, respect international law.
Clean the air, wear a mask 😷
Visiting Scholar at UC Davis, Global Migration Center.
[Views expressed are personal]
Stop the wars, respect international law.
Clean the air, wear a mask 😷
Pinned
DC
@dcosta.bsky.social
· Dec 1
Why Trump Allies Say Immigration Hurts American Workers (Gift Article)
JD Vance and others on the “new right” say limiting immigration will raise wages and give jobs to sidelined Americans. Many studies suggest otherwise.
www.nytimes.com
The pseudo-populist so-called "new" right scapegoats immigrants for problems in the economy - while ignoring how employers take advantage of immigration status - and ignoring pro-worker policies that would actually raise wages and improve labor standards:
Trump’s new H-2A wage rule will radically cut the wages of all farmworkers - and that appears to be the administration's explicit intention: New estimates from @benzipperer.org & me at @epi.org show farmworkers stand to lose $4.4 to $5.4 billion annually under DOL’s updated Adverse Effect Wage Rate
Trump’s new H-2A wage rule will radically cut the wages of all farmworkers: New estimates show farmworkers stand to lose $4.4 to $5.4 billion annually under DOL’s updated Adverse Effect Wage Rate
The Trump administration will cut the pay of all farmworkers by reducing the minimum wages paid to workers filling seasonal agricultural jobs in the H-2A visa program. By lowering wage rates implement...
www.epi.org
November 26, 2025 at 8:17 PM
Trump’s new H-2A wage rule will radically cut the wages of all farmworkers - and that appears to be the administration's explicit intention: New estimates from @benzipperer.org & me at @epi.org show farmworkers stand to lose $4.4 to $5.4 billion annually under DOL’s updated Adverse Effect Wage Rate
Reposted by DC
Workers in Merced County, CA are harvesting sweet potatoes. There's so much work at this time of year that there are multiple shifts. These workers start at 4 a.m. when it's still dark. Lamps hung on the tractor give them enough light to sort the potatoes by size into boxes. #WeFeedYou
November 8, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Workers in Merced County, CA are harvesting sweet potatoes. There's so much work at this time of year that there are multiple shifts. These workers start at 4 a.m. when it's still dark. Lamps hung on the tractor give them enough light to sort the potatoes by size into boxes. #WeFeedYou
Reposted by DC
October 27, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Data analysis from @bloomberg.com assesses the impact of current and future H-1B visa reforms on foreign workers with MBAs - finding that 70% of MBAs are hired at the two lowest wage levels, and that "prioritizing higher-paid jobs could assure H-1B status for many MBA grads":
Will Foreign MBAs Win or Lose With Trump’s H-1B Reforms? Maybe Both
Two largely overlooked sentences in a government proclamation, calling for raising the H-1B program’s wages, could prove to have a big effect.
www.bloomberg.com
October 24, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Data analysis from @bloomberg.com assesses the impact of current and future H-1B visa reforms on foreign workers with MBAs - finding that 70% of MBAs are hired at the two lowest wage levels, and that "prioritizing higher-paid jobs could assure H-1B status for many MBA grads":
Quick summary of my comments: The H-1B program needs better rules - including an updated prevailing wage rule, better allocation system, and a requirement that employers recruit US workers - plus real enforcement from the Labor Department, which will require additional staffing and funding for DOL:
President Trump issued a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas. What will be the impact and is it enough to fix the program and motivate tech to hire Americans?
🎧 EPI’s Daniel Costa joined @usatoday.com The Excerpt with @danataylor.bsky.social to break it all down
🎧 EPI’s Daniel Costa joined @usatoday.com The Excerpt with @danataylor.bsky.social to break it all down
Will changes to the H-1B visa program preserve jobs for Americans?
The H-1B visa program — a key pipeline for skilled foreign workers in tech — has recently been upended by President Donald Trump. A recent executive order now mandates that companies to pay $100,000 p...
www.epi.org
October 23, 2025 at 8:37 PM
Quick summary of my comments: The H-1B program needs better rules - including an updated prevailing wage rule, better allocation system, and a requirement that employers recruit US workers - plus real enforcement from the Labor Department, which will require additional staffing and funding for DOL:
As @ddayen.bsky.social and now the @washingtonpost.com have reported - the Trump administration has admitted their immigration enforcement efforts will lead to a spike in food prices. Their solution? Cut wages for farmworkers, already some of the lowest paid workers in the country
Trump administration says immigration enforcement threatens higher food prices
U.S. farmers face labor shortages and potential food price hikes due to Trump’s immigration policy, the administration acknowledged in a Federal Registry document.
www.washingtonpost.com
October 12, 2025 at 12:51 AM
As @ddayen.bsky.social and now the @washingtonpost.com have reported - the Trump administration has admitted their immigration enforcement efforts will lead to a spike in food prices. Their solution? Cut wages for farmworkers, already some of the lowest paid workers in the country
Reposted by DC
I want to do a little breakdown of this investigation I published today for @prismreports.org about gender-based violence in the H-2A agricultural visa program.
She managed to get a farmworker visa. Once in the U.S., she endured abuse.
A Prism investigation reveals that women are routinely shut out of the H-2A program. Those who get in report doing non-agricultural labor and facing sexual violence and trafficking
prismreports.org
September 24, 2025 at 9:48 PM
I want to do a little breakdown of this investigation I published today for @prismreports.org about gender-based violence in the H-2A agricultural visa program.
Thank you CA Department of Public Health for recommending that people wear an N95 mask during a significant Covid surge:
Lots of coughing & sniffles going on around you? Stay purr-fectly protected by wearing a mask! 😷🐈
Wearing a high-quality N95 mask protects you from respiratory viruses like flu, COVID-19 and RSV.
📲 https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Respiratory-Viruses/When-and-Why-to-Wear-a-Mask.aspx
Wearing a high-quality N95 mask protects you from respiratory viruses like flu, COVID-19 and RSV.
📲 https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Respiratory-Viruses/When-and-Why-to-Wear-a-Mask.aspx
September 27, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Thank you CA Department of Public Health for recommending that people wear an N95 mask during a significant Covid surge:
Reposted by DC
"The H-1B visa program is deeply flawed. But Trump's new $100,000 fee on employers won’t fix it," says EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social.
There are much better ways to fix the H-1B program and protect workers. Learn more in Costa's @msnbc.com op-ed:
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
There are much better ways to fix the H-1B program and protect workers. Learn more in Costa's @msnbc.com op-ed:
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Opinion | Trump cited my research to criticize H-1B visas. But his solution is all wrong.
The program is deeply flawed. But a new $100,000 fee on employers won’t fix it — and could have unintended consequences.
www.msnbc.com
September 26, 2025 at 3:07 PM
"The H-1B visa program is deeply flawed. But Trump's new $100,000 fee on employers won’t fix it," says EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social.
There are much better ways to fix the H-1B program and protect workers. Learn more in Costa's @msnbc.com op-ed:
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
There are much better ways to fix the H-1B program and protect workers. Learn more in Costa's @msnbc.com op-ed:
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Trump's new H-1B fee of $100K is a haphazard and not-well-targeted way to reform a visa program that is deeply flawed. To fix it, new rules are needed with labor enforcement to ensure fair conditions & pay for migrant & US workers.
Here's @epi.org's Policy Watch explainer on the fee and its impact:
Here's @epi.org's Policy Watch explainer on the fee and its impact:
Trump creates $100K entry fee for H-1B visas, directs DOL and DHS to update H-1B wage and lottery rules
On September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation declaring a new $100,000 fee requirement on H-1B visas. The H-1B visa program provides temporary, non-immigrant U.S. work visa...
www.epi.org
September 22, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Trump's new H-1B fee of $100K is a haphazard and not-well-targeted way to reform a visa program that is deeply flawed. To fix it, new rules are needed with labor enforcement to ensure fair conditions & pay for migrant & US workers.
Here's @epi.org's Policy Watch explainer on the fee and its impact:
Here's @epi.org's Policy Watch explainer on the fee and its impact:
The amount collected from the new $100K H-1B fee will be $6.5 billion, not $14bn.
The fee will be applicable to H-1B petitions for new employment after Sept 21 and for less than half of new H-1Bs, ie those who were not already in the US. In 2024, 46% of the 141,000 new H-1Bs were outside of the US.
The fee will be applicable to H-1B petitions for new employment after Sept 21 and for less than half of new H-1Bs, ie those who were not already in the US. In 2024, 46% of the 141,000 new H-1Bs were outside of the US.
US employers are facing a $14bn annual bill for hiring skilled foreign workers after Donald Trump slapped a $100,000 fee on the cost of securing a visa for new employees to enter the country. on.ft.com/3IsjhcK
September 21, 2025 at 7:51 PM
The amount collected from the new $100K H-1B fee will be $6.5 billion, not $14bn.
The fee will be applicable to H-1B petitions for new employment after Sept 21 and for less than half of new H-1Bs, ie those who were not already in the US. In 2024, 46% of the 141,000 new H-1Bs were outside of the US.
The fee will be applicable to H-1B petitions for new employment after Sept 21 and for less than half of new H-1Bs, ie those who were not already in the US. In 2024, 46% of the 141,000 new H-1Bs were outside of the US.
Reposted by DC
Raids & indiscriminate immigration enforcement are disrupting farm labor & America’s food system
This Thursday, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at an @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor
9/18 @1pm ET. Register: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
This Thursday, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at an @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor
9/18 @1pm ET. Register: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
September 16, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Raids & indiscriminate immigration enforcement are disrupting farm labor & America’s food system
This Thursday, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at an @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor
9/18 @1pm ET. Register: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
This Thursday, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at an @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor
9/18 @1pm ET. Register: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
Reposted by DC
As I wrote about for @motherjones.com, people are already crossing state lines to get the Covid vaccine—which may become more common if the CDC vaccine advisory committee recommends limiting them this week. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Welcome to the new era of Covid vaccine tourism
Trump and RFK Jr.'s anti-vax crackdown is driving Americans across state lines—and making some pay out of pocket.
www.motherjones.com
September 15, 2025 at 1:11 PM
As I wrote about for @motherjones.com, people are already crossing state lines to get the Covid vaccine—which may become more common if the CDC vaccine advisory committee recommends limiting them this week. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Reposted by DC
Raids & indiscriminate immigration enforcement are disrupting farm labor & America’s food system.
Next week, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at a @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor.
Thurs, 9/18. Register here: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
Next week, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at a @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor.
Thurs, 9/18. Register here: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
Immigration Raids, Reform and the Future of Farm Labor
Investigate Midwest hosts a conversation on raids, reform, and the future of America’s farm workforce.
www.eventbrite.com
September 11, 2025 at 6:47 PM
Raids & indiscriminate immigration enforcement are disrupting farm labor & America’s food system.
Next week, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at a @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor.
Thurs, 9/18. Register here: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
Next week, EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social will speak at a @investigatemidwest.bsky.social panel on raids, reform, & the future of farm labor.
Thurs, 9/18. Register here: www.eventbrite.com/e/immigratio...
A not-so-happy Labor Day for farmworkers, thanks to the Trump administration's latest move to end the USDA survey of farm employers. The only reason to do this is to lower wages for both migrant farmworkers and U.S. farmworkers - who are already some of the-lowest paid workers in the country:
USDA quietly said Friday it will, after a century, end the Farm Labor Survey (FLS), the only wage survey of ag employers.
FLS is a critical input to setting local minimum wages for H-2A visa workers to try to avoid harm to U.S. workers' wages.
#LaborDay #EconSky
www.nass.usda.gov/Newsroom/Not...
FLS is a critical input to setting local minimum wages for H-2A visa workers to try to avoid harm to U.S. workers' wages.
#LaborDay #EconSky
www.nass.usda.gov/Newsroom/Not...
September 1, 2025 at 7:31 PM
A not-so-happy Labor Day for farmworkers, thanks to the Trump administration's latest move to end the USDA survey of farm employers. The only reason to do this is to lower wages for both migrant farmworkers and U.S. farmworkers - who are already some of the-lowest paid workers in the country:
David Bacon's interview with Lelo Juarez, a farmworker who was imprisoned by ICE - and likely targeted because of his union organizing and advocacy and criticism of the H-2A visa program:
Why Lelo Juarez Chose Self-Deportation
How the current conditions of immigrant detention and Trump Administration policies impelled a farmworker organizer to return to Mexico.
progressive.org
August 12, 2025 at 2:41 PM
David Bacon's interview with Lelo Juarez, a farmworker who was imprisoned by ICE - and likely targeted because of his union organizing and advocacy and criticism of the H-2A visa program:
Reposted by DC
Completely unqualified hack.
The Trump administration is an affirmative action speak for mediocre white guys. It's kind of a reverse-DEI.
The Trump administration is an affirmative action speak for mediocre white guys. It's kind of a reverse-DEI.
Trump nominates Heritage Foundation economist as labor statistics chief
Trump nominates Heritage Foundation economist as labor statistics chief
EJ Antoni, longtime critic of Bureau of Labor Statistics, nominated to replace Erika McEntarfer, who Trump fired
Donald Trump has announced he is nominating EJ Antoni, the chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, as the next commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released are HONEST and ACCURATE,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
August 12, 2025 at 2:00 AM
Completely unqualified hack.
The Trump administration is an affirmative action speak for mediocre white guys. It's kind of a reverse-DEI.
The Trump administration is an affirmative action speak for mediocre white guys. It's kind of a reverse-DEI.
California has some of the better state labor standards enforcement agencies in the US, but even there, agencies are understaffed: A recent audit found Cal/OSHA had an overall staff vacancy rate of 32%, or 289 unfilled positions, last year: calmatters.org/politics/202...
‘Critical weaknesses’ in Cal/OSHA inspections of accidents
Cal/OSHA is so understaffed it doesn’t visit all accident sites, even when workers are injured. A state audit says that can ‘undermine’ safety laws.
calmatters.org
July 22, 2025 at 6:51 PM
California has some of the better state labor standards enforcement agencies in the US, but even there, agencies are understaffed: A recent audit found Cal/OSHA had an overall staff vacancy rate of 32%, or 289 unfilled positions, last year: calmatters.org/politics/202...
Reposted by DC
In 2020, Arundhati Roy wrote a gorgeous, prescient essay called “The Pandemic is a Portal”. In this piece, I discuss who actually walked through it: the COVID conscious community, and why I’m proud to be a part of it.
www.thegauntlet.news/p/the-pandem...
www.thegauntlet.news/p/the-pandem...
The Pandemic Has Been a Portal (for a few of us)
It's true that most people keep choosing "normalcy". But the COVID conscious community is showing us a radical new way forward, that centers care
www.thegauntlet.news
July 22, 2025 at 2:45 AM
In 2020, Arundhati Roy wrote a gorgeous, prescient essay called “The Pandemic is a Portal”. In this piece, I discuss who actually walked through it: the COVID conscious community, and why I’m proud to be a part of it.
www.thegauntlet.news/p/the-pandem...
www.thegauntlet.news/p/the-pandem...
Reposted by DC
Florida is committing "enforced disappearance," a very serious violation of international human rights law.
www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
www.ohchr.org/en/special-p...
www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
www.ohchr.org/en/special-p...
July 13, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Florida is committing "enforced disappearance," a very serious violation of international human rights law.
www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
www.ohchr.org/en/special-p...
www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
www.ohchr.org/en/special-p...
The public can't yet wrap their brain around the level of intrusion in their lives and the suffering that will be caused for millions as a result of ICE becoming the highest-funded law enforcement agency in the government:
EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social talked to @npr.org about how new funding for ICE might impact immigration enforcement.
"The impacts are just going to be unfathomable. We're heading straight into becoming a surveillance state & a police state," he said.
Listen here: www.npr.org/2025/07/10/n...
"The impacts are just going to be unfathomable. We're heading straight into becoming a surveillance state & a police state," he said.
Listen here: www.npr.org/2025/07/10/n...
How new funding for ICE might impact immigration enforcement
NPR speaks with the Economic Policy Institute's Daniel Costa about the large amount of additional funds allocated to ICE in the tax and spending bill and how it might impact immigration enforcement.
www.npr.org
July 11, 2025 at 4:25 PM
The public can't yet wrap their brain around the level of intrusion in their lives and the suffering that will be caused for millions as a result of ICE becoming the highest-funded law enforcement agency in the government:
.@benzipperer.org's new report has estimates on the job losses that will be caused by Trump's deportations - including state by state estimates and for the construction and child care industries:
1 in 5 workers is an immigrant.
Immigrants are a crucial part of the US economy, and Trump's radical deportation agenda will hurt us all.
Trump’s increase in deportations will destroy 6 million jobs—for both immigrants AND US-born workers: www.epi.org/publication/...
Immigrants are a crucial part of the US economy, and Trump's radical deportation agenda will hurt us all.
Trump’s increase in deportations will destroy 6 million jobs—for both immigrants AND US-born workers: www.epi.org/publication/...
July 11, 2025 at 3:38 PM
.@benzipperer.org's new report has estimates on the job losses that will be caused by Trump's deportations - including state by state estimates and for the construction and child care industries:
Reposted by DC
EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social was featured on @wbur.org's "On Point" talking about America's reliance on migrant farm workers. Listen here:
www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025...
www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025...
Why American farmers rely on unauthorized workers
More than 40% of hired farm laborers in the U.S. are immigrants without legal status. President Trump campaigned on a plan for mass deportation. But even he admits -- the country can't survive without...
www.wbur.org
July 9, 2025 at 6:56 PM
EPI's @dcosta.bsky.social was featured on @wbur.org's "On Point" talking about America's reliance on migrant farm workers. Listen here:
www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025...
www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025...
My colleague @benzipperer.org estimates if Trump meets deportation targets of 1 million per year, it'll lead to massive job losses: 6 million total, 44% of them jobs belonging to US-born workers. If Trump gets $160 billion in new enforcement money, he might pull it off.
www.epi.org/blog/the-rep...
www.epi.org/blog/the-rep...
July 1, 2025 at 8:49 PM
My colleague @benzipperer.org estimates if Trump meets deportation targets of 1 million per year, it'll lead to massive job losses: 6 million total, 44% of them jobs belonging to US-born workers. If Trump gets $160 billion in new enforcement money, he might pull it off.
www.epi.org/blog/the-rep...
www.epi.org/blog/the-rep...
Republican reconciliation bill will nearly triple funding for ICE, increase the detention budget from $3.4 billion to *$45* billion - giving Trump a total of $185 billion to turn the US into a police state. And there's ZERO new funds for protecting workers:
June 10, 2025 at 1:21 AM
Republican reconciliation bill will nearly triple funding for ICE, increase the detention budget from $3.4 billion to *$45* billion - giving Trump a total of $185 billion to turn the US into a police state. And there's ZERO new funds for protecting workers: