Pre-Employ Blog

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Employers in all industries are encouraged to review or enact a I9 E-verify program like www.i9compliance.com after the latest law enforcement raid on a employer.

One of our favorite employment law firms to work with is Seyfarth. The below article is a great recap of ICE regulations and fines, including a $95 million dollar plea deal. 

Seyfarth Synopsis:  Today’s post is by our colleague, Mahsa Aliaskari, Seyfarth Shaw LLP’s Senior Counsel. Mahsa has advised and defended businesses with up to 100,000+ nationwide employees on U.S. immigration compliance programs and practices. She and Angelo A. Paparelli — along with former USCIS Director, Leon Rodriguez, noted worksite enforcement lawyer, Dawn Lurie, and Alexander Madrak, who recently joined Seyfarth from the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice — are part of Seyfarth’s Immigration Compliance Specialty Team, within the firm’s Immigration Group. Mahsa’s basic message is that, given the Administration’s focus on immigration worksite-enforcement, employers  — no matter how vigilant corporate leaders perceive their immigration compliance measures to be — must take nothing for granted.  Stop assuming and check things out.http://info.i-9compliance.com/contact-us

The I-9 Form , Employment Eligibility Verification is a standard industry document for employers throughout the U.S. Used to verify an employee’s identity and employment authorization, this form is required of all employers and their employees by federal law.

The current Form I-9 has been utilized since 2013 to determine identity and eligibility, but a recent announcement from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) noted that revisions are in place.

On August 25, 2016, the USCIS Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved a Revised Form I-9.  

Is your company prepared for the upcoming changes?

Employers who are audited and found to have committed hiring or other violations will find that fines have almost doubled according to the passing of the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (Inflation Adjustment Act).       

Employment verification is an essential task for U.S. employers. In order to maintain a compliant operation, businesses must ensure that all employees they hire are legally authorized for work in the country. Often, this is established through completion of Form I-9 or participation in E-Verify. However, sometimes even undertaking these actions can prove to be rife with obstacles and potential for noncompliance for unaware businesses. That sentiment was recently reinforced after numerous government entities weighed in on pre-population of certain Form I-9 fields.