By: Beconrad

With so much talk about immigration reform and cracking down on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants, many businesses are nervous, and many of those firms are taking a second look at the processes they use to ensure everyone on their payroll is legally permitted to work in the United States.

The Federal government has created the E-Verify system to make it easier for employers of all sizes to verify that the workers they are hiring are legally entitled to work in the U.S. This system is Internet-based, making it convenient for human resources managers, hiring managers and others to instantly check the legal status of an applicant before extending a job offer.

Of course, many employers will have questions about the E-Verify system, and it is important for those employers to research the system thoroughly and be sure that they fully understand it.

Companies should use the E-Verify system each time they bring on a new worker. This will help to ensure that each new worker hired is legally eligible to work in the United States. The E-Verify system should be used to check the legal status of the worker before any type of job offer is extended.

The employer can use the information provided by the applicant, including that worker’s Social Security number and other identifying documents. The employer simply enters this information into the E-Verify system and receives an instant response regarding the legal status – or lack of same – of the worker. Based on this information the employer can decide whether or not to extend that job offer.

While the E-Verify system is an excellent tool for screening new hires, many companies are choosing to take things a step further by screening all of the employees on their payroll using the E-Verify system. Many companies have implemented a blanket system requiring workers to submit new I9 forms and current identification. The I9 form is the form used by the Federal government to verify the legal status of a particular worker. In order to complete a new form, the employee fills out his name and address, then provides the required identification documents. Workers can either use a passport or a combination of two other documents, including a drivers license, birth certificate, Social Security card or naturalization certificate.

As crackdowns on illegal immigration continue and businesses continue to be held accountable for their hiring practices, the E-Verify system is expected to become even more important. Businesses of all sizes, no matter what industry they are in or what the makeup of their workforce, need to become familiar with the E-Verify system and how it is used. Failing to do so could leave those firms at risk as the government continues to pressure companies who hire illegal immigrants.

  e-verify, employment, immigration, international employees, US immigration