The ICE-Man Cometh - 8 Steps Every South Carolina Business Can Take to Protect Itself from an ICE Raid
With the new regulations promulgated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regarding No-Match letters, many employers are scrambling to get their I-9 compliance up to par. And given examples like WalMart, Golden State Fence, Swift Foods, and, most recently, Koch Foods, it's no wonder employers are worried. Employers whose I-9 files don't comply with regulations can face extensive civil and criminal penalties - including fines from $250-$10,000 per occurrence and possible prison time. But there are steps employers can take to ensure that they are complying with regulations.
- Establish a corporate policy that outlines all aspects of how your business will treat I-9 compliance. With an attorney's help you can put together a great guideline to make clear to H.R. personnel how to deal with "tricky" situations.
- Provide all personnel involved in recruiting and hiring with a copy of the policy and a complete training session to familiarize themselves with policy implementation. Let your personnel know that under the law, they could be civilly and criminally liable too.
- Establish a "tickler" system on your business calendar that accurately and timely alerts you when temporary employment documents may be expiring. A tickler system is essential to ensure that workers whose documents expire don't have incomplete I-9 documentation on file.
- Self Audit! Once a year have your immigration attorney pull your payroll and I-9 records and make sure that everything is properly completed. This will avoid clerical errors that may have been overlooked by H.R. from becoming a headache (and grounds for a fine) later on.
- Require all subcontractors working for your business sign an agreement that affirms that they are up to date on their own I-9 compliance and will remove any worker from your job site if it comes to your attention that they are not, in fact, authorized to work - and don't be afraid to enforce the agreement! Moreover, make sure that any subcontracted worker who will be working under your control for any length of time fills out an I-9 form with your H.R. person - ICE does not care that an individual is a "subcontractor" or "independent" contractor if you are controlling their work without having complied with I-9 regulations.
- DO NOT 'CHURN' NO-MATCH LETTERS FROM THE SSA! If you get a No-Match letter from the SSA regarding a worker, you must follow up on it until the issue is resolved. Multiple No-Match letters that are not resolved are an invitation for criminal and civil penalties.
- Make sure you're hiring procedures aren't discriminatory. Everyone has heard of ICE, but you should make yourself aware of the requirements under Title VII managed by the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). The OSC metes out punishment for overly cautious employers who play it too safe and discriminate against non-U. S. citizen workers to avoid complications with ICE.
- Finally, consider putting an immigration attorney on retainer for H.R. to consult in the event of a "tricky" situation, or worse, an ICE raid. If the ICE-man cometh, you'll need experienced help.
