|
|
|
|
 |
Posts Tagged ‘Worksite Enforcement’
Thursday, October 8th, 2009
This week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a final rule rescinding the Social Security “No-Match” regulation. The so-called No-Match rule would have charged an employer with having “constructive knowledge” of the unauthorized employment of its employees if the employer failed to take certain steps in response to receiving a No-Match letter from the Social Security Administration, informing it that an employee’s name and Social Security Number provided for a W-2 earnings report did not match SSA’s records.
(more…)
Tags: I-9 Compliance, Immigration Compliance, No-Match, No-Match Rule, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Worksite Enforcement | Click Here To Comment »
Friday, August 28th, 2009
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced an extension of the validity of Form I-9, and has made a PDF-fillable version available on their web site. The new edition contains no changes from the previous edition and USCIS stated they will continue to accept the February 2, 2009 edition in addition to the current edition, dated August 7, 2009.
Tags: Agency Updates, I-9, I-9 Compliance, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Agency Updates, Worksite Enforcement | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009
We have previously reported on a lawsuit by the US Chambers of Commerce and other groups that was decided today. The lawsuit challenged the amendments to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) that require most companies with federal government contracts to enroll in the E-Verify system. The FAR amendments were originally promulgated in November of 2008, and the Obama Administration has indicated it wants the amendments to take effect September 8, 2009.
The court was asked to rule on both sides’ motions for summary judgment – essentially, requests by both sides to end the lawsuit because the facts and law were clear. The Chambers argued, essentially, that because Congress had made the E-Verify program voluntary, but the new Federal Acquisition Regulations made the program mandatory for federal contractors, the FAR amendments violated Congress’ express directive and were invalid. The government’s argument, in essence, was that the FAR amendments did not make E-Verify mandatory – that a company could always choose not to seek federal contracts, in which case the company would not have to participate in E-Verify.
The court agreed with the government’s position, dismissing the Chambers’ lawsuit and clearing the way for the FAR amendments to go into effect on September 8, unless the Chambers appeal the court’s decision.
Congress may also get in the action, as the E-Verify program is still set to “sunset” as of September 30. A provision extending the program (and providing explicit statutory authority for the FAR provision) was included in the Senate’s bill funding the Department of Homeland Security, but has not yet been enacted.
Tags: E-Verify, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Hot Questions, Worksite Enforcement | Click Here To Comment »
Thursday, July 16th, 2009
Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Janet Napolitano announced on July 8, 2009 the Agency’s plans regarding two controversial regulations dealing with worksite enforcement.
DHS announced that they would withdraw the Social Security No-match regulation which has been enjoined from taking effect and the subject of federal court litigation. Controversial since its passage, the Social Security No-Match rule established procedures that employers could follow if they received No-Match letters from the Social Security Administration or DHS. No-Match letters inform an employer that an employee’s name and Social Security Number provided for a W-2 earnings report do not match SSA records. However, DHS acknowledged in their court filings that the letters are not indicative of unauthorized employment as they are often the result of typographical errors or unreported name changes.
The regulation was promulgated as part of the previous Administration’s effort stop the employment of unauthorized aliens. Since October of 2007, the rule has been enjoined from taking effect. DHS was ordered by the Federal Court to submit a brief by July 10, 2009 explaining the Obama Administration’s view on the regulation. In the press release, Secretary Napolitano stated that DHS will imminently be proposing a new regulation rescinding the 2007 No-Match Rule.
DHS also announced that it will implement the amendment to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) which, with a few exceptions, requires federal contractors to verify the employment authorization of new employees as well as existing employees working on federal contracts. The FAR requirements apply to the verification of work eligibility on federal contracts that are for a period longer than 120 days and with a value of over $100,000. FAR also includes service or construction subcontracts of a covered contract, valued at over $3,000. Contracts for commercially available off the shelf items, as well as federal contracts for food and agricultural products shipped as bulk cargo would not be subject to this requirement. Secretary Napolitano indicated that she expects FAR to go into effect on September 8, 2009.
“E-Verify is a smart, simple and effective tool that reflects our continued commitment to working with employers to maintain a legal workforce,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Requiring those who seek federal contracts to use this system will create a more reliable and legal workforce. The rule complements our Department’s continued efforts to strengthen immigration law enforcement and protect critical employment opportunities.”
Also on July 8, 2009 the U.S. Senate approved an amendment to the Homeland Security appropriations bill, introduced by Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) that would extend the E-Verify program until September 30, 2012. In addition, the Sessions amendment would mandate the requirement that federal contractors use E-Verify without the exceptions noted above.
Tags: Agency Updates, E-Verify, I-9 Compliance, No-Match Rule, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Agency Updates | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the enforcement arm of the Department of Homeland Security responsible for investigating immigration violations and enforcing immigration laws at the worksite, announced a nationwide initiative to audit employers’ Form I-9 employment eligibility verification records on July 1, 2009. The announcement was followed by the issuance of Notices of Inspection to 652 employers across the country. This was a strong statement by ICE of their intentions to pursue worksite enforcement actions. In comparison, only 503 Notices of Inspection were issued in all of fiscal year 2008.
The ICE announcement is in line with the recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announcement that the Obama Administration is interested in focusing its resources on the criminal prosecution of employers who knowingly hire illegal workers. In conjunction with the notice the DHS Assistant Secretary for ICE John Morton stated “ICE is committed to establishing a meaningful I-9 inspection program to promote compliance with the law. This nationwide effort is a first step in ICE’s long-term strategy to address and deter illegal employment.”
Under the new worksite enforcement policy, ICE began notifying businesses that it planned to inspect their hiring records to see whether employees have proper employee documentation.
ICE has indicated that many of the companies were located in New York and California. On Wednesday, American Apparel Inc., a Los Angeles clothing retailer, confirmed that ICE gave notice that 1,600 of its 5,600 factory employees might be working illegally. It couldn’t verify the status of 200 others. In Arizona alone, federal immigration-enforcement agents notified 32 Arizona companies on Wednesday that their employment records are being audited.
In this era of worksite enforcement, it is critical for employers to recognize and pre-empt immigration related liabilities due to non-compliance with federal immigration regulations. Experienced immigration counsel is invaluable to companies during this time, as they can assist with internal I-9 internal audits and providing Human Resources’ personnel with ongoing training and tools for compliance. Such actions can limit exposure and liability and establish record-keeping procedures that will establish compliance in case of an audit by ICE.
Tags: Government Investigations, Hot Topics, I-9 Compliance, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Agency Updates | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, July 1st, 2009
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that the current version of the I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification Form February 2, 2009 will remain valid beyond the June 30, 2009 expiration date listed on the form.
USCIS has requested that the Office of Management and Budget approve the continued use of the current Form I-9. While this request is pending, the Form I-9 will not expire.
The Service will update the I-9 when the extension is approved. In the interim, employers will be able to use either the Form I-9 with the new revision date or the Form I-9 with the February 2, 2009 revision date at the bottom of the form.
Tags: Agency Updates, I-9, Immigration Compliance, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Agency Updates | Click Here To Comment »
Monday, May 11th, 2009
One of the most pervasive problems in worksite enforcement is the ready availability of fraudulent documents to those who would work without authorization. Employers need only check that the documents “reasonably appear to be genuine;” the government’s E-Verify program is meant to provide another layer of inquiry through which employers can access government databases to verify that a document presented matches information in the government’s databases – for example, that the social security number on the card is not made-up or matched to a different person’s name.
One of the government’s enforcement strategies has been to charge workers whose fraudulent documents happen to match information from an actual person with “aggravated identity theft,” rather than solely with misuse of documents for an immigration purpose (i.e. completing an I-9). On May 4, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Flores-Figueroa v. United States, overturning the government’s ability to use that particular criminal charge in the I-9 context without proving that the worker knew the identification was not only fraudulent, but also matched the information of a real person.
(more…)
Tags: Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Worksite Enforcement | Click Here To Comment »
Monday, May 4th, 2009
We’ve added a Client Alert to our main website about the new approach to enforcement the Department of Homeland Security announced recently. The DHS says enforcement efforts will now focus more on criminal prosecutions of the employers of unauthorized workers, rather than the workers themselves. This change in strategy is in keeping with the call to end or restrict the large-scale worksite raids of the Bush administration, which resulted in prosecution of many more employees than employers.
Tags: Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Agency Updates | Click Here To Comment »
Friday, May 1st, 2009
Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer LLP is pleased to announce the launch of our new micro-site entirely dedicated to providing employers with “need-to-have” resources to stay in compliance with US Immigration laws. The new site provides extensive information to businesses on federal and state worksite compliance laws, I-9 enforcement, E-Verify, Social Security no-match letters and H-1B Labor Condition Application compliance issues.
Special features on the site include:
· An I-9 Desk Reference Handbook (covering Employee Verification, Employer Sanctions and Anti-discrimination laws)
· An E-Verify State-by-State Legislation Survey.
The new site is www.worksite-compliance.com. We hope that you find our new site helpful and informative.
Tags: E-Verify, I-9 Compliance, ICE, Worksite Compliance, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in News & Politics, Worksite Enforcement | Click Here To Comment »
Friday, April 24th, 2009
President Obama’s nominee for Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), John Morton, faced a Senate panel for his confirmation hearing this week. He pledged to continue to prosecute bad-faith employers who hire unauthorized workers. Morton also announced that the Administration intends to eventually make use of the E-Verify, online employment verification program mandatory for all employers.
(more…)
Tags: I-9 Compliance, ICE, Worksite Enforcement
Posted in Worksite Enforcement | 1 Comment »
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
