Immigration lawyers and attorneys say that while some applicants are seeking deferments from active deportation cases, most have been living and working undocumented undetected, meaning they have presented themselves to federal immigration authorities for the first time.

It’s unclear how many of those workers are in California. A Homeland Security spokesman would not release state-by-state figures, citing “ongoing investigations.”

But California is a willing participant in the program; Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration says it was the first state to submit a letter of support for worker protections. The state is home to nearly 1.5 million workers who are undocumented immigrants, compensating over 7% of the workforce.

Such workers are a frequent subject of state labor investigations, and labor advocates say undocumented workers typically fear both losing their jobs and being reported to immigration authorities for complaining of violations at the workplace.

“This fear can prevent them from fully cooperating with labor enforcement agencies in reporting and corroborating violations,” Daniel Lopez, a spokesman for the state Labor Commissioner’s Office, said in a statement. “Ultimately, fewer protections undermine workers and hurt responsible employers.”

Over the past two years, the office, which investigates wage theft, has sent letters arguing for protection from deportation in 136 workplace investigations potentially covering hundreds of workers. The Occupational Safety and Health Division sent at least 12 letters. The Agricultural Labor Relations Board, which oversees the rights of farmworkers, sent 10, and the Department of Civil Rights, which investigates complaints of workplace discrimination, sent 60, spokesmen said.

The state even paid to help immigrants get work permits. Last year, Newsom announced $4.5 million to pay for free legal services to help farmworkers who are involved in labor investigations request deferred action. The money, set aside through mid-2026, has so far helped select more than 500 workers for eligibility and 175 to apply for the program.

There are as many as 800,000 seasonal and year-round agricultural workers in California; at least half are believed to be undocumented.

“Agricultural areas have very limited access to immigration legal services,” said Jason Montiel, a spokesman for the Department of Social Services, which administers the grant to five legal aid groups across the state. “Providing farmworkers with direct access to legal immigration services when their labor rights are violated increases the likelihood that they will apply for work and cooperate with employment agencies.”

Spokesmen for Newsom did not respond to a question about what would happen to the state grant program if federal rules change.

Nicole Gorney, a supervising attorney at VIDAS Legal Services, which receives a state grant, said she has 12 clients who work on the farm waiting to be granted deferred action. She had hoped the state would expand the program to include workers in other industries.

“There are still a lot of workers who can qualify, but they really don’t want to come out of the shadows,” she said the morning after the election.

Gamez’s deferred action was granted in connection with retaliation claims he and his co-workers filed against Century Car Wash in 2018. That year, they also filed wage theft claims with the Commissioner’s Office for State Work. According to state records, they told the bureau that their managers made them show up earlier and leave later than business hours, but their time sheets didn’t match all the hours they worked. The co-owners of the car wash denied the claims and told the state the time sheets were accurate.

After demanding payments from his managers, Gamez said he was fired and told to leave in front of customers. According to state records, he and his colleagues won wage claims in 2021; a state hearing officer ruled that Gamez was owed more than $20,000. But the state is still investigating claims that workers were fired and questioned about their immigration status in retaliation for speaking out. Last year, at the request of Gamez’s lawyer, the Office of the Labor Commissioner sent a letter to Homeland Security requesting deportation protection for the workers.

“The ongoing investigation … is being conducted by our retaliation complaint investigation unit and requires the cooperation and testimony of workers,” Labor Commissioner Lilia Garcia-Brower wrote in the letter.