Our November Special Edition Newsletter on Employer Compliance is now available. We reference what employers need to be aware of in light of the results of the mid-term elections, the increase in enforcement that is predicted to continue and how best to protect yourself in this business climate.
Check out our new I-9 website and take the free Survey.
There’s a big shift that’s taken place with immigration policy with the GOP at the helm in the House; namely John Boehner (R-Ohio) and extremist Steve King (R-Iowa), who will likely chair the House Subcommittee on Immigration. It has been speculated, in the new Congress, that Lamar Smith (R-TX) the current Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee will be named chair of that committee.
House Republications have already said that they will focus on border security and immigration enforcement over any future immigration reform. King favors changes to birthright citizenship to keep US-born children of illegal immigrants from receiving citizenship and argues more states should pass immigration crackdowns like Arizona’s SB 1070. He has also pushed for more border enforcement and an electrified fence along the border to keep illegal immigrants out and has stated, “We do that with livestock all the time”. Boehner will set a good deal of the agenda, and is likely to follow some of the plans mentioned in the Pledge to America that was released in September.
This most certainly will be a challenging shift from how current Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and how other leading Democrats handled immigration issues. Particularly, we can expect proposals that increase penalties for immigration-related crimes and make the removal of immigrants with criminal convictions easier. Add to this the fact that both Smith and King have supported proposals that authorize state and local law enforcement officers to enforce immigration laws; and lastly, it’s been said that we can expect increased scrutiny of DHS enforcement practices by Congress and increases in funding for both border and interior enforcement.
For more on this, we link to the AILA Advocacy article released today.
The president of a Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., furniture manufacturing business was charged Monday with criminal violations stemming from a probe by ICE ‘s Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) into allegations the company hired unauthorized alien workers.
The president and principal shareholder of Brownwood Furniture, Rick Vartanian, is charged in a criminal action with one count of obstruction of justice and one misdemeanor count of continuing to employ unauthorized workers. Court documents from November 2009 indicate that Vartanian told ICE that unauthorized workers identified during an earlier HSI audit were no longer employed by the company, when, in fact, the company continued to employ 18 of those workers and had taken steps to shield them from detection by HSI. HSI agents executed a search warrant at the company in December 2009 and discovered the 18 unauthorized employees still working there. Vartanian, who has already agreed to pay a $10,000 fine, faces a statutory maximum sentence of 66 months in prison.
This action comes not more than 3 weeks following previous action taken against Brownwood Furniture’s vice-president, Michael Eberly, charged in a criminal case filed Oct. 12th with one count of continuing employment of unauthorized workers, a misdemeanor. Eberly is scheduled to make his initial court appearance Nov. 19th. According to the charging document, Eberly knew that many of the furniture company’s workers were unauthorized and continued to employ them. Eberly, who has agreed to pay a $5,000 fine, also faces a maximum sentence up to six months in prison.
The investigation was a result of an anonymous tip that resulted in an investigation in July 2009 where it was discovered that 61 of the firm’s 73 employees had submitted invalid documents to obtain their jobs. After HSI notified the company about the discrepancies, the executives told investigators the unauthorized workers had been terminated. However, when HSI agents executed a search warrant at the business in Dec. 2009, they encountered 30 unauthorized workers, 18 of whom had purportedly been terminated following the July audit.
We refer to the ICE Press Release
It’s common knowledge that the U.S. government has been performing widespread investigations and audits of employers to crack down on employment of undocumented non-citizens. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) recently reported record-breaking figures citing the highest deportation numbers and the most employer audits in our nation’s history, and states:
“Since January 2009, ICE has audited more than 3,200 employers suspected of hiring illegal labor, debarred 225 companies and individuals, and imposed approximately $50 million in financial sanctions-more than the total amount of audits and debarments than during the entire previous administration.”
Because of this, employer compliance is becoming more complex and enforcement activities are increasing at record pace. The days of thinking that immigration enforcement is only targeting industries that employ a diverse workforce, such as healthcare, hospitality, restaurants, garment and the construction business, are long gone. Every employer must be aware of immigration laws as they relate to the processing and management of their I-9 forms and have a trained staff for those charged with the responsibility of managing I-9’s. Many audits have resulted in fines for well known and respected employers, for those that employ foreign workers, as well as businesses, both large and small, that unintentionally filled out I-9 forms incorrectly. Document mistakes – missing signatures, dates, over-documentation problems on I-9’s, have resulted in fines from $110 to $1,100 per mistake.
Recent examples of I-9 violations and penalties involve:
The key to I-9 compliance for most organizations starts with a thorough self-examination of existing paper I-9’s, E-Verify submissions (if applicable), standard operating procedures, and past practices. While there are many checklists and do-it-yourself guides and Podcasts available on the Internet and elsewhere, consulting a licensed immigration or employment lawyer who is familiar with I-9 and E-Verify compliance issues can save employers hours of research, provide a solution tailored to the organization and save the employer thousands of dollars in fines and penalties.
Visit our new I-9 Employer Resource Center and contact our office. We work proactively with our clients to provide comprehensive, and cost-efficient assistance in developing and maintaining best practices necessary to assure compliance with USCIS and Department of Labor regulations.
Through a recently leaked memorandum to the public, it was revealed that Immigration Services fraud prevention officers have been urged to check social networking websites such as MySpace, Facebook, Classmates, amongst others, when investigating cases.
The memo is directed at officers of USCIS’ Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS), a unit of the agency that investigates pending and approved immigration petitions to verify the information in those petitions.
The memo suggests that its agents attempt to “friend” citizenship petitioners and their beneficiaries on social networks in the hope that these users allow agents to monitor their activities for evidence of suspected fraud, including evidence that their relationships might not live up to the USCIS’ standard of a legitimate marriage.
The presumptions in the memorandum concerning those that participate in social networking websites are quite disconcerting. Additionally, there is no mention whether or not DHS agents are required to reveal their government affiliation or their real name during the friend request while monitoring activities, leaving open the possibility that agents could actively deceive online users wile monitoring the websites.
A word to the wise should be sufficient. We urge those who are going through the immigration process to use discretion in what they share about their particular situations in chat rooms and social networking websites.
ICE announced today the launch of its newly redesigned website, ICE.gov. The new website features the latest ICE news information and an enhanced media/image gallery. The new ICE.gov also includes in depth information about the ICE Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the ICE Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).
The new site also features ICE’s Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS), a public, Internet-based tool, designed to assist family members, attorneys and other interested parties in locating detained aliens in ICE custody. The ODLS was launched on July 23, 2010.
LONG BEACH, CA, October 22, 2010. Immigration Solutions, a leading full service consulting, immigration, and employer compliance organization, announces its new I-9 Employer Resource Center that is uniquely designed to assist businesses in developing and maintaining compliant employment practices.
Reputable industry leaders are being audited, as employer compliance becomes more complex and enforcement (investigations and audits) increase. In order to effectively deal with these issues and avoid the very severe consequences of fines and penalties for non-compliance, employers must take the time to develop a strategy and be prepared in advance with a Compliance Program.
Many companies struggle with determining who to turn to for their I-9 compliance needs. Immigration Solutions approaches its Employer Compliance practice with the same exceptional service level clients have experienced from their other practice areas. Their talented and experienced team offers onsite or offsite in-depth I-9 audits, compliance training, assistance with the development of training manuals and compliance policies and procedures, and on-call consulting services. They additionally assist their clients in responding to government Notices of Inspection and audit requests.
With pricing that is cost-efficient and tailored to the needs of their clients, Immigration Solutions is positioned to offer high touch services and solutions to their clients at affordable prices.
Websites: www.I-9Audits.com
www.immigrationsolution.net
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Immigration Solutions provides US and Canadian immigration services to individuals and employers throughout the USA and abroad. They specialize in business immigration and have a depth of experience in the IT, health care, arts & entertainment, and sports industries, amongst others. Their services include complex business visas for investors, multinational managers, skilled professionals and outstanding individuals in science, business, education, athletics and entertainment. They additionally provide employer compliance consulting services on proper I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) auditing, training, and work with their clients to develop compliant immigration policies and procedures. They offer these services, as well, to government contractors and advise on FAR E-Verify enrollment and compliance issues.
The Justice Dept announced today that it reached a settlement with Catholic Healthcare West (CHW) to resolve allegations that they engaged in a pattern of citizenship discrimination by imposing discriminatory hurdles to employment for work-authorized individuals by requesting that non-US citizen and naturalized US citizens present more work authorization than required by law. CHW is the 8th largest hospital provider in the nation, operating facilities in California, Nevada and Arizona. CHW agreed to pay $257,000 in civil penalties – the largest amount of civil penalties ever paid to resolve such allegations.
This settlement sends a strong message to all employers how vitally important it is to have staff that is charged with the I-9 process properly trained on the laws governing I-9’s and specifically on each section of the form. All workers who are authorized to work in the USA have the right to look for a job without encountering discrimination because of their immigration status or national origin”, said Thomas E. Prerez, Asst. Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
We are seeing with increasing frequency, particularly in the hospitality, restaurant and contracting industries, the collaboration between the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) and ICE concerning the recent rash of I-9 audits and work site investigations. We think this is for a myriad of reasons:
1) Not meeting employee minimum wage requirements
2) Non-conformance with H-2B temporary labor certification regulations
3) Mis-classifying workers as independent contractors
4) Hiring undocumented workers
5) I-9 document violations; and
6) A high volume of uncontested E-Verify Non-confirmations
In September a meeting took place between immigration attorneys and representatives from the USCIS Verification Division to discuss updates with E-Verify. It was discussed that The Office of Special Counsel and E-Verify have signed an MOU to share information between the two agencies, enabling the OSC to increase its role in the enforcement of E-Verify policies, specifically related to discrimination and employer use of the E-Verify system.
E-Verify is particularly monitoring employers that are suspected of misusing the system for pre-screening purposes or who appear to be providing data that is inconsistent with the size of their business and their usage of the E-Verify system.
If you’re an employer and you receive a Notice of Inspection (NOI) or a Subpoena, it is highly advisable that you contact an attorney that specializes in employer compliance issues before you provide any documentation whatsoever to ICE agents, DHS, or DOL.
For more information on E-Verify, we link to the Quick Reference Guide for E-Verify Employer Agents and to the E-Verify menu on the USCIS website.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Immigration Solutions provides US and global visa services to individuals and employers throughout the USA and abroad. We specialize in business immigration and have a depth of experience in the IT, health care, arts & entertainment, and sports industries, amongst others. Our services include complex business visas for investors, multinational managers, skilled professionals and outstanding individuals in science, business, education, athletics and entertainment. We additionally provide employer compliance consulting services on proper I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) auditing, training, and work with our clients to develop compliant immigration policies and procedures. We offer these services, as well, to government contractors and advise on FAR E-Verify enrollment and compliance issues.
USCIS has updated and revised the E-Verify manuals for both Employers and Federal Contractors.
The new manuals reflect recent changes to the E-Verify website and offer additional guidance and clarification. Employers or their agents who use E-Verify, federal contractors who have the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) E-Verify clause in their contracts, and employers considering using E-Verify should become familiar with the new manuals.
Note that there are some new FAQ’s with detailed instructions for FAR contractors that have the FAR E-Verify clause in their contracts. Also, note that web service developers have until December 2010 to add the required functionality from the June 2010 E-Verify redesign.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
We find in our I-9 audit practice that most employers have problems with their I-9 documentation and that if discovered by ICE during an audit, would cost them thousands of dollars in fines. We also find that most employees charged with handling I-9’s have never received any formal training. If you are aware that your I-9’s have problems, we urge you to not ignore it. Please take a look at our services and solutions. Our talented and knowledgeable compliance team can discuss the following with you:
You can contact our office here.