UPDATE: Companies with Government Contracts Told to Verify their Worker’s Status—Other Employers are Pending?
Washington-In June 2008, I reported that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) had joined forces to require private companies doing business with the federal government to ensure their employees are working here legally. At that time the federal government was also considering making this a requirement for all employers across the nation
The June order was aimed at cracking down on 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 snagged by this requirement.
This week the Department of Homeland Security changed its website to reflect that, at this time, only federal agencies and contractors/companies working on a federal contract would be required to insure all their workers were checked through the E Verify System.
What is E-Verify? (Eligibility Verification Program) is an online system operated jointly by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. Participating employers can check the work status of new hires online by comparing information from an employee’s I-9 form against SSA and DHS databases. The DHS reports, “…more than 69,000 employers are enrolled in the program, with over 4 million queries run so far in fiscal year 2008.”
Using E Verify is voluntary for most employers
The DHS has apparently backed down on requiring all employers to use this system. At this time, using E Verify is voluntary for most employers, but on their website DHS is encouraging every employer to use this system.
The Department of Homeland Security website states, “E-Verify is an essential tool for employers committed to maintaining a legal workforce, and the number of registered employers is growing by over 1,000 per week….Companies can access E-Verify online and compare an employee’s Form I-9 information with over 444 million records in the SSA database, and more than 60 million records in Department of Homeland Security…”
Most employees fill out I-9 forms and submit accompanying documents that employers generally look over to determine whether the worker is legitimate.
I’ll keep an eye on this requirement and report any changes in the future.
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