A Home Depot store in northeast Los Angeles has become the center of a growing controversy after labor advocates accused the retailer of installing high-pitched noise-emitting devices outside one of its locations to discourage day laborers from gathering there. The devices, mounted on lampposts in the store’s parking lot, allegedly emit an intense, constant sound that workers say causes headaches, nausea, and physical discomfort.
The store, located in Cypress Park beneath a busy highway overpass, has long served as an informal meeting point for day laborers seeking short-term construction and landscaping work. Advocacy groups argue that the recent installation of the noise machines represents a deliberate attempt to make the area uninhabitable for workers who rely on the site to earn a living.
The Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur de California (Idepsca), an organization that supports immigrant and day laborer communities, held a press conference this week demanding that Home Depot immediately remove the devices.
Community Groups Accuse Company of Intimidation
Idepsca leaders say the machines are part of a broader pattern of hostility toward day laborers, particularly undocumented immigrants. Maegan Ortiz, the organization’s executive director, said the sound devices are being used as a tool of intimidation rather than a solution to community concerns.
“We have been here and remain open through global pandemics, providing services and creating community,” Ortiz said at the news conference. “We’re not going to let sound machines, gates and intimidation get rid of us. Day laborers are here to stay. IDEPSCA is here to stay. The immigrant community is here to stay.”
Advocates describe the noise as piercing and relentless. One worker attending the press conference said he now brings earplugs with him while waiting for job offers because the sound is otherwise unbearable. According to the worker, the noise “penetrates your bones,” making it difficult to remain in the area for any length of time.
Although the devices were turned off during the press conference itself, workers reported that they were switched back on roughly an hour later. Advocates say this reinforced their belief that the machines are intentionally being used to clear the area of laborers.
Elected Officials Condemn the Practice
Los Angeles City Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez joined labor advocates at the event and strongly criticized the use of the devices, framing the issue as one of human rights and public accountability.
“They chose to weaponize sound,” Hernandez said. “Devices like these are used as torture against our people.”
Hernandez also questioned whether Home Depot had the authority to install the machines at the site. She said the devices appear to be mounted on land owned by the California Department of Transportation, rather than property controlled by the retailer.
“This is the people’s land,” Hernandez said. “This is Caltrans land that is owned by Californians who pay taxes. The people’s land is being used to torture the people.”
Her remarks added legal and political weight to the dispute, raising questions about how public land is being used and whether corporate actions are infringing on community rights.
ICE Raids Intensify Fear Among Workers
The situation at the Cypress Park Home Depot is further complicated by repeated immigration enforcement activity at the location. Advocates say the sound machines were installed just days after the most recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation nearby.
According to Ortiz, immigration agents have detained approximately 50 people at the Cypress Park Home Depot so far this year. In one widely reported incident, ICE agents detained a U.S. citizen whose young child was in the car and then drove away with the toddler still inside.
The store’s proximity to one of Idepsca’s worker support hubs has made it a focal point for both organizing efforts and enforcement actions. Advocates argue that the combination of ICE raids and environmental deterrents like sound machines sends a clear message to immigrant workers that they are not welcome.
As part of their demands, labor groups are calling on Home Depot to publicly oppose immigration enforcement actions in its parking lots, a step the company has declined to take.
Home Depot Pushes Back on Allegations
Home Depot has denied claims that the sound devices were installed to target day laborers or assist immigration enforcement. Company spokesperson George Lane said the retailer uses a variety of measures to maintain safety around its stores.
“To say that we are cooperating with these immigration enforcement activities is just false,” Lane said in an email. “We are not informed when these activities are going to happen, and we’re in no way involved in the operations.”
Lane added that Home Depot cannot legally prevent federal agents from entering its property. “We cannot legally interfere with federal enforcement agencies, including preventing them from coming into our stores and parking lots,” he said.
Another company spokesperson said the noise machines are part of a general safety initiative intended to prevent illegal overnight parking and are unrelated to immigration enforcement or efforts to displace day laborers.
A National Issue Playing Out Locally
Across the United States, Home Depot parking lots have long functioned as informal hiring sites for day laborers. However, under President Donald Trump’s deportation-focused immigration policies, these locations have increasingly become sites of aggressive enforcement.
Federal agents have carried out similar operations at Home Depot stores in other parts of California, including a January raid in Kern County. Earlier this year, a separate enforcement action at a Los Angeles Home Depot sparked large-scale protests across the city, eventually prompting the Trump administration to deploy National Guard troops in response.
