Justice Department Settles Immigration-Related Employment Discrimination Claims against Staffing Company

On April 8, 2011, the U.S. Justice Department, Office of Special Counsel (OSC), announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with LFStaffing Services Inc., located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to resolve allegations that LF Staffing Services engaged in employment discrimination by improperly pre-screening job applicants and rejecting valid work authorization documents presented by certain groups of immigrant workers.

The department found that LF Staffing Services did not permit job applicants to begin the application process unless they were able to present documents sufficient to establish their employment eligibility and further failed to permit at least one individual who presented valid Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) to apply for employment. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) prohibits employers from refusing to honor valid employment authorization documents on the basis of citizenship status or national origin.

The INA's anti-discrimination provision protects all authorized workers from unfair documentary requests during the Form I-9 process," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "The Justice Department is committed to stopping workplace discrimination against citizens and work-authorized non-citizens alike."

Under the terms of the settlement, LF Staffing Services Inc. has agreed to pay $1,100 in civil penalties and full back pay to the injured party. LF Staffing Services will also train its human resources personnel about employers nondiscrimination responsibilities in the I-9 process, and will provide periodic reports to the department.

The Civil Rights Division Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSCs responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA, which protects work authorized individuals against discrimination in hiring, firing and recruitment or referral for a fee on the basis of citizenship status and national origin. The INA also protects all work-authorized individuals from discrimination in the employment eligibility verification process and from retaliation.

Badmus Advisory:  Every employer must be careful not to cross the fine line between IRCA enforcement and discriminatory practices.
Pre-screening or requiring specific employment documents or more documents than necessary to prove employment eligibility is going too far in the employment eligibility verification process.  Such actions violate immigration discrimination rules, resulting in costly fines and unwanted publicity. For more information and assistance with developing an effective immigration compliance policy and program that can save you thousands in fines  and penalties, you are invited to email or call Ann Badmus at annbadmus@badmuslaw.com, 469-916-7900.

H-1B Cap Season Now Open!

U. S. businesses use the H-1B program to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields, such as scientists, engineers, or computer programmers.

USCIS started accepting H-1B petitions subject to the fiscal year (FY) 2012 cap on

April 1, 2011. Cases will be considered accepted on the date USCIS receives a properly filed petition for which the correct fee has been submitted; not the date that the petition is postmarked.  As of April 15, 2011, only 7,100 cap-subject H-1B visa applications have been filed.

Read more about the H-1B Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 Cap Season.

For more information about H-1B filing procedures or assistance with filing, you are invited to email or call Ann Badmus at annbadmus@badmuslaw.com, 469-916-7900.