The Kansas-based Dairy Farmers of America cooperative recently acquired W&W Dairy in Monroe, Wisconsin. New management swiftly implemented “E-Verify,” an online system that checks employee immigration status and other information.
E-Verify’s enactment would immediately flag to employers their immigrant workers who entered the country illegally or who are otherwise unauthorized to work in the country — ultimately forcing the workers’ termination. The online system is required for employers in some U.S. states, but not in Wisconsin. In a statement, the DFA stated it must use the program because of their obligation to follow federal rules on verifying employee’s legal work eligibility.
E-Verify is required for many federal contractors, though it remains unclear whether any of those contracts are actually fulfilled by Wisconsin facilities. Regardless, DFA plans to roll out the policy Sept. 1 across all of its farms and manufacturing facilities.
What has been framed as a passive verification procedure is, in reality, a Trojan horse for an overwhelmingly Hispanic and Latinx workforce to be pushed out of their jobs, effectively erasing immigrants from an industry that profits off their culture and dedication.
In mid-August, 43 W&W workers walked out of the dairy facility on company time. According to the company’s E-Verify filing, the plant has under 100 employees, meaning around 50% of its workers chose to take action against the new policy.
The workers claimed the policy will effectively force immigrant workers out of their jobs, holding the potential to cause dozens of their fellow employees — many of whom have dedicated years of their lives to the job — to now face unemployment and erasure from an industry that has long relied on their labor.
The enactment of E-Verify in Monroe is part of a broader national debate. In March 2025, GOP lawmakers ramped up efforts to impose E-Verifiy mandates nationwide, framing them as a tool to crack down on illegal immigration and slow down unauthorized employment, according to Pluribus. A June 2025 Wall Street Journal panel highlighted how the Trump administration’s intensifying immigration enforcement is shaking the food supply chain and disrupting agriculture and dairy operations.
When a vast majority of Wisconsin dairy farm workers are unauthorized to work in the U.S., economic consequences are also to be anticipated. In Wisconsin, an estimated 70% of labor on dairy farms is performed by immigrants who live in the country illegally. According to the Wisconsin Examiner, without them, researchers state that the entire dairy industry would collapse overnight.
The economic importance of this labor also resonates nationally. In the Northeast and Midwest, immigrant workers — predominantly Hispanic and Latinx — make up an estimated 50-60% of dairy workers, with even higher proportions in other regions, according to Investigate Midwest. The message is clear that policies targeting this workforce do not just threaten immigrant lives — they threaten the backbone of Wisconsin’s and America’s dairy economy.
W&W’s small company size plays a key role in its marketing strategy, promising authentic Hispanic-style cheeses with queso blanco, queso fresca and cotija cheeses being some of the company’s most popular and award-winning products. When a company profits from a culture while working to displace the very labor force that makes those products possible, a conversation must be had about who benefits from that culture — and at whose expense.
The implementation of this policy not only threatens the livelihood of existing employees who have dedicated years of their lives to the dairy industry, it exposes a harsh truth about America’s culture — how its existence relies heavily on the exploitation of the cultures of immigrants. Wisconsin cannot actively profit off of the culture of the same demographic they refuse to recognize as valuable workers.
Organizer with Voces de la Frontera — a Milwaukee-based immigrant rights group — Luis Velazquez joined the walkout. Velazquez read a letter from one of the striking workers who concealed their name out of fear of consequences. It explained that employees walked out to demand fair treatment and recognition of their seniority while also calling for protection from threats and intimidation.
By reading the anonymous letter aloud, Velazquez highlighted the climate of fear that E-Verify policies create for employees who are living in the country illegally, many of whom worry that speaking out publicly could lead to termination or even deportation.
The W&W Dairy company’s new verification policy reveals the direct impact of the weaponization of immigration status in the workplace. The walkout organized by dairy workers in solidarity demonstrates that in moments of uncertainty and injustice —silence is not an option. When workers risk their livelihoods to demand dignity, they prove that solidarity is both a defense and a weapon against exploitation.
If we fail to stand with these workers now, we allow corporations to profit from immigrant culture while discarding immigrant lives. Solidarity is not optional, it is the only way forward.
