Independent Contractor Compliance Blog - by Collabrus™

Washington D.C.-The Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration have united under the Bush Administration to require private companies doing business with the federal government to ensure their employees are working here legally. The order only affects future contractors at this time. President Bush signed the order Friday, June 6, 2008.

The order requires federal departments and agencies to require their private contractors to use an electronic system to verify that the workers are eligible to work in the U.S. Homeland Security operates the Web-based E-Verify system, which Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff said, “1,000 employers a week are signing up to use.” The system allows employers to check Social Security numbers provided by employees.

Most employees fill out I-9 forms and submit accompanying documents that employers generally look over to determine whether the worker is legitimate.

With the E-Verify system, employers enter a name and Social Security number using using a web-based portal. E-Verify checks various government databases to make sure the SSA number is legitimate and that it goes with the name that was submitted. If the there are problems, the person is tagged as a potentially illegal worker and must resolve the discrepancy.

The system takes a few minutes to utilize and with more businesses using it in the future there is a fear that it will become overloaded. However, Chertoff states, “the system (currently) clears 99.5% automatically…”

The order is aimed at cracking down on the hiring of illegal immigrants. However, people who overstayed visas or came to the country legally but do not have permission to work, such as some students or those awaiting work permits, also could be caught by this new requirement.

So what?

This is yet another item on your list of “To Do’s” and requirements to remember when bringing on talent.  The seemingly endless list of tasks makes using specialists and experts even more challenging in this quickly changing, regulated world in which we do business. It is becoming more critical than ever to have expert guidance.