In an effort to hold employers accountable for their hiring practices through increased workplace audits, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has announced that it will issue Notices of Inspection (NOIs) to 1,000 employers across America to alert business owners that ICE will audit their hiring records to determine compliance with employment eligibility verification laws.

According to a news release from ICE, the workplace audits of the 1,000 businesses served with NOIs will involve a comprehensive review of the Employee Eligibility Verification Forms – known as I-9 Forms – that employers are required to complete and retain for each individual hired in the United States, and which also require employers to review and record each individual's identity and work eligibility documents and determine whether the documents reasonably appear to be genuine and related to that individual.

In April, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued updated worksite enforcement guidance emphasizing ICE's major priorities would focus on employers who cultivated illegal workplaces by breaking laws and knowingly hiring illegal workers. Since implementing the new ICE worksite enforcement strategy – which include increased form I-9 audits – statistics from the news release reveal:

• 45 businesses and 47 individuals debarred;
• 142 Notices of Intent to Fine (NIF) totaling $15,865,181;
• 45 Final Orders totaling $798,179;
• 1,897 cases initiated, and;
• 1,069 Form I-9 Inspections.

In July, ICE issued 654 NOIs to businesses nationwide – part of its effort to audit businesses suspected of using illegal labor – resulting in the following statistics:

• More than 85,000 Form I-9s were reviewed and more than 14,000 suspect documents (approximately 16 percent) were identified.
• 61 NIFs have been issued, resulting in $2,310,255 in fines, and 267 cases are currently being considered for NIFs.
• 326 cases were closed after businesses were found to be in compliance with employment laws or after businesses were served with a Warning Notice in expectation of future compliance.

With ICE “cracking down” on the hiring practices of U.S. employers, businesses in this country are strongly advised to remain in compliance with the nation’s employment eligibility verification laws. One way to ensure compliance is through the use of the E-Verify program, an online electronic employment eligibility verification system that matches information given by workers on 1-9 forms to DHS and Social Security Administration (SSA) databases.

In addition, the DHS recently announced a new "I E-Verify" campaign to recognize the 170,000 businesses nationwide that seek to maintain legal workforces by using E-Verify, a campaign that will also let consumers know which businesses are working hard to follow the law and are committed to protecting employment opportunities.

Now more than ever, employers must maintain full compliance or risk government audits. A designated E-Verify service agent, I-9Compliance.com – a turnkey I-9/E-Verify solution offered by nationally recognized employment screening provider Pre-Employ.com – is pre-integrated with the E-Verify system and provides employers with an electronic employment verification solution to help them manage complex compliance issues in a web-based, paperless environment. And it is a good cure for a case of the chills caused by ICE.

Does your company E-Verify? If not, find out more about Pre-Employ.com’s I-9Compliance.com I-9/E-Verify solution by visiting www.i-9compliance.com, emailing info@i-9compliance.com, or calling 1-800-300-1821. Follow Pre-Employ.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/PreEmploy.

View Complimentary Webinar On Demand: “E-Verify & Federal Contractors: Know The Facts” 

pr@pre-employ.com 

*We welcome relevant comments and questions from consumers, experts, and human resources professionals. Please do not submit comments with advertisements as they will not be posted publicly. Thanks for visiting our blog!