Compliance in the Workplace
with Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing and Myers, LLP. She
assists employers and corporate attorneys throughout the country
regarding immigration compliance issues. She is also frequently
hired by other attorneys as a consultant on related issues. A graduate
of the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law, she is
a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the North
Carolina Advocates for Justice.
Saintsing & Myers, LLP
4601 Six Forks Road, Suite 400
Raleigh, North Carolina 27609
919.250.2000 Phone
919.250.2211 Fax
amason@smithdebnamlaw.com
www.smithdebnamlaw.com
inconsistent, seemingly changing year
to year (or month to month). Most
immigration trends are politically
motivated. While aiming to expand
opportunities for legalization of both
family-based and employment-based
immigrants, the Bush administration
placed great emphasis upon worksite
enforcement. The Obama administration
has attempted no significant efforts at
immigration reform, and deportation
numbers are at an all-time high.
The prospect of employment
lures people to the United States. If
the government circumscribes the
availability of jobs for illegal immigrants,
then the incentive to come to the
U.S. also declines. Accordingly, the
government has deputized employers,
requiring them to enforce the border
in the office place and punishing those
who fail to do so sometimes even in
criminal court.
often. Because the area is regulatory in
nature, little notice is required to alter
the requirements placed upon employers.
For this reason, every business should
be well acquainted with qualified
immigration counsel. The attorney must
be familiar with immigration law from
a compliance/employment standpoint,
and should have experience working
with human resources professionals
and company principals. He or she
should also be practiced in federal
criminal defense (or at least ensure the
immigration attorney works with a good
defense attorney), as the two areas of law
often overlap.
No business is insulated from
enforcement actions, and every employer
must maintain an immigration policy. In
addition to keeping immigration counsel
at the ready, below are some of the major
considerations for a business to formulate
or refine its existing procedures.
of a Good I-9 Policy
employer must complete for every new
employee (NOT just foreign employees).
It demonstrates an employer's commit-
ment to immigration compliance, and if
an investigation or raid ever occurs, the
I-9 forms will become either the best
friend or the worst enemy of the employer.
By completing the form properly, on
time and uniformly, the business protects
itself from a claim that it had "construc-
tive knowledge" if an unauthorized
employee turns out to be working. Most
employers know that they cannot hire
someone they already know to be unlaw-
fully present in the U.S., but a willful
policy of "looking the other way" can be
just as dangerous. The goal of the I-9 is
for a business to comply in good faith,
regardless of whether an unauthorized
individual slips through the cracks.
The form is deceptively simple.
Making mistakes on the one-page
document can lead to technical violations
and/or fines, should the U.S. Department