Service launched Operation Wetback in June 1954, as a way to repatriate unauthorized laborers back to Mexico.

Statistics from the Department of Homeland Security show that there were 17,695 "removals" and 232,769 "returns" during the 1955 fiscal year from July 1, 1954, to June 30, 1955. The program ended a few months after the 1955 fiscal year. The criticisms of unions and churches made their way to the U.S. Department of Labor, as they