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EMPLOYER COMPLIANCE & WORKSITE ENFORCEMENT
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Hiring managers and human resource professionals know the value of degreed skilled worker foreign nationals, especially in the science, technology, engineering and healthcare occupations. As the workforce becomes more global in scope, employers are increasingly learning that it is essential to understand and effectively adhere to immigration compliance laws and regulations.
The trend toward increased scrutiny of immigration employment practices will likely continue in the foreseeable future. With the demise of immigration reform in Congress, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is stepping up enforcement of existing laws prohibiting the employment of illegal workers. These recent developments have made it even more critical that employers maintain a strong immigration compliance profile. Some important developments include: |
- Administrative enforcement efforts have both increased and broadened in scope. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has received much higher levels of funding for employment verification enforcement, and it has far more personnel devoted to employer sanctions than in recent years. DHS has also broadened the scope of its enforcement efforts, no longer focusing only on what it calls “critical infrastructure” industries such as airlines and nuclear energy companies. Instead, it has begun to focus on a much wider range of businesses, and recent enforcement activities have targeted retail, construction, landscaping, agriculture, and many other sectors.
- Administrative enforcement has increased, addressing complex compliance issues such as contractor and vendor relationships, and Social Security no-match letters, has become increasingly difficult.
- DHS has worked with other law enforcement agencies to pursue criminal sanctions in this area much more aggressively than in the past.
- States and localities have begun to enact laws affecting immigration compliance, creating a circumstance where companies operating in multiple states face the possibility of varying compliance risks and obligations.
- Congress is closer than it has been in many years to enacting broad changes to the employer sanctions rules. While there have been various proposals in the House and the Senate, it is exceedingly likely that any new employer sanctions legislation will include a requirement to verify employment eligibility with the government, along with more severe penalties for non-compliance.
A three-year-old enforcement campaign against employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants is increasingly resulting in arrests and criminal convictions, using evidence gathered by phone taps, undercover agents and prisoners who agree to serve as government witnesses.
How Successful has ICE been in its worksite enforcement efforts?
- In fiscal year 2007, ICE secured more than $30 million in criminal fines, restitutions, and civil judgments in worksite enforcement cases. We arrested 863 people in criminal cases and made more than 4,000 administrative arrests. That is a tenfold increase over just five years before.
- The number of criminal and administrative arrests has steadily increased over the past few years. Those arrested criminally include a variety of persons–corporate officers, employers, managers, contractors and facilitators. In criminal cases, ICE often pursues charges of harboring illegal aliens, money laundering and/or knowingly hiring illegal aliens. Harboring illegal aliens is a felony with a potential 10-year prison sentence. Money laundering is a felony with a potential 20-year prison sentence.
- ICE has found these criminal sanctions to be a far greater deterrent to illegal employment schemes than administrative fines.
- These arrests also include illegal aliens charged with criminal violations. Aliens have been charged with possession or sale of fraudulent documents, identity theft, Social Security fraud or re-entry after deportation.
According to ICE, arrests in worksite cases have jumped from a total of 850 in 2004 to 4,940 last year, including 863 arrests based on criminal charges. ICE has already exceeded the number of criminal arrests this year and expects that figure to continue to rise.
Fiscal Year 2008 Accomplishments so far (October 2007 – August 2008)
- As of August, ICE made more than 1,000 criminal arrests tied to worksite enforcement investigations.
- Of the 1,022 individuals criminally arrested, 116 are owners, managers, supervisors or human resources employees facing charges including harboring or knowingly hiring illegal aliens. The remaining workers criminally arrested are facing charges including aggravated identity theft and Social Security fraud.
- ICE has also made more than 3,900 administrative arrests for immigration violations during worksite enforcement operations.
WHAT IS A BUSINESS OWNER SUPPOSED TO DO?
As an employer, compliance with immigration laws is crucial. We are in a historic moment regarding U.S. Immigration reforms. Major U.S. companies have been slapped with steep fines for non-compliance with immigration laws and contractors have been closed and even jailed for employing illegal immigrants. Now is the time for prudent companies to implement a Corporate Immigration Compliance Program. Our firm's years of experience and knowledgewith employer compliance and worksite enforcement issues can assist your business inoffsetting the extent of sanctions and other ICE enforcement threats. Our Worksite Enforcement and Corporate Compliance Team provide practical advice on “best practices” and “safe harbors” to help companies mitigate risk. Our depth of experience enables us to assist clients with all aspects of compliance and investigations from personnel training or developing a corporate immigration compliance program to responding to an ICE audit. We provide counselling, compliance training and “pre-audit” audit safeguard training in these key areas:
- Employment Verification / I-9 Compliance
- Social Security (SSN) No-Match Letter
- E-Verify (Formerly Basic Pilot)
- H-1B / LCA Compliance
- Mergers & Acquisitions Immigration Due Diligence
Immigration Solutions also provides on-site, web-seminar, and tele-seminar training for your business in the following areas:
- Management Group Compliance Information Seminars
Our team provides your management a seminar on immigration compliance and issues that may arise with employees. This comprehensive seminar discusses all issues that may arise in your work place regarding immigration compliance and your immigrant and non-immigrant workers.
- Company Immigration Compliance Evaluations with I-9 Verification
Our team will go in-houseto meet with necessary management and analyze all relevant employee immigration documentation to determine your company's complete immigration compliance position including risks, potential violations and procedural issues. We will provide a detailed written report including suggestions to strengthen your verification process. We can tailor our services to your needs.
- Group Employee Immigration Seminar
We provide in-house seminars for your employees explaining the current immigration law situation and potential ways immigrants can become permanent residents and eventual citizens in the United States. The employees can ask questions and are always invited to follow-up with our office if they believe they qualify for one of the programs we discuss.
RECENT ENFORCEMENT HEADLINES
For more information on Employer Compliance:
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HOW IMMIGRATION SOLUTIONS CAN HELP YOU
Immigration Solutions works proactively with its clients to provide comprehensive assistance in developing and maintaining best practices necessary to assure compliance with USCIS, ICE, SSA and DOL regulations.
Employer compliance is becoming more complex and enforcement (investigations and audits) is increasing. In order to effectively deal with these issues and avoid the very severe consequences for non-compliance, employers must take the time to develop a strategy and be prepared in advance with an Immigration Compliance Program.
Immigration Solutions will customize such a program for you and will provide onsite or telephonic training, consulting, and document auditing in all of the areas mentioned above, as well as provide ongoing compliance updates. For more information on our services, please contact us at info@immigrationsolution.net
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