Employees at a Target store in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area have reportedly noticed an uptick in absences among colleagues following the recent arrest of two co-workers who are U.S. citizens, caught in an immigration crackdown.
Additionally, Target staff have decided to delay their scheduled in-office work for several weeks due to escalating tensions in Minneapolis, which has become a focal point of clashes between federal agents and local protesters.
Internally, many employees are expressing dissatisfaction and feeling uncertain and anxious about Target’s lack of public commentary, as enforcement actions continue to take place near their work environments.
Using internal Slack channels, workers have been sharing their fears and frustrations. Some have even circulated a letter to the company’s ethics team, seeking definite guidance on how to navigate situations involving federal agents, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
Target has informed employees that it does not have a partnership with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and advises staff not to engage with federal officials. Reports indicate that employees have been directed to focus on de-escalation strategies, being made aware that while agents can access public areas, they cannot enter private sections without warrants.
In various Twin Cities stores, employees have communicated to managers their reluctance to work because of immigration officers seen in nearby parking lots and stores, as per sources close to the situation.
There isn’t a unanimous view among workers on how the company should handle this. Some believe that staying neutral is the safest course of action, cautioning that taking a public stance against immigration enforcement could attract more federal scrutiny, potentially complicating store operations.
Shockwaves have been felt in the Twin Cities since ICE agents fatally shot 37-year-old U.S. citizen Renee Nicole Good during an immigration raid on January 7.
On the following day, federal agents arrived at a Target store in Litchfield, where two 17-year-old employees were momentarily detained outside, as shown in videos from local authorities and witnesses. In one video, one of the teens can be heard asserting his citizenship as he is restrained and placed into a government vehicle.
The two young men were eventually released, but at least one was briefly taken to a detention center before being freed, while the other was dropped off at a different location after federal agents confirmed his citizenship.
Tensions in Minnesota remain high, with recent reports of ICE agents forcibly removing an American from his home while searching for a suspected sex offender.
The Post has reached out to Target and the Department of Homeland Security for comments regarding the situation.
