Government Looks for Companies Hiring Illegal Workers
The U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency sent notices to 1,000 companies yesterday informing them of plans to inspect I-9 forms filled out by new employees along with other documents to determine if the businesses were employing illegal immigrants. The companies being audited, both large and small, were determined based on tips the government received that illegals were working on the job.
The Obama administration, according to an Associated Press report, has sought to find employers of illegal immigrants through audits rather than "high-profile workplace raids" favored by the ICE under George Bush.
Food manufacturing, restaurants, retail and related industries have been the subject of illegal immigrant searches in the past, although it appears as though most of the companies notified of the impending audit do not fit the description this go-around.
"ICE’s worksite enforcement strategy focuses on employers, penalizing those who knowingly violate the law and deterring others from breaking the law," Gillian Christensen, a spokesperson for the ICE, told the AP. "ICE may arrest workers we encounter, but arresting workers in and of itself is not a strategy or the goal of the program."
Companies found to have hired illegals are subject to civil and criminal penalties. According to The Wall Street Journal, "The possibilities range from fines and being barred from competing for government contracts to criminal charges of knowingly employing illegal workers, evading taxes and engaging in identity theft."
Peter Schey, an attorney for American Apparel, told the Journal that auditing I-9s is "a senseless policy in the name of making a down payment on comprehensive immigration policy."
- ICE notifies employers it will audit their records to check for hiring of illegal immigrants – The Associated Press/The Washington Post
- More ‘Silent Raids’ Over Immigration – The Wall Street Journal
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4 Comments on "Government Looks for Companies Hiring Illegal Workers"
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The law is the law and needs to be either enforced or amended into a statute that can be enforced.
As to what stricter enforcement will mean to the food industry, it will create labor shortages, raise labor rates, and significantly raise legal budgets.
The great lie is that this industry wants to see immigration laws enforced. Look past the rhetoric and the subtle winks and you’ll find a food distribution system that has profited on the back of undocumented workers for years.
Ryan said it all. Enforce the law, or get rid of it. I recall breaking Robinson-Patman daily when I worked on the manufacturer side, 25 years ago, because that’s what the entire industry did. It really ate at me. I brought it up to a federal official once, and he just said (unforgettably, to me at least), “No, don’t worry about it. It’s not a priority for us right now.”