A national construction company successfully resolved an investigation by the Immigrant and Employee Rights (IER) section of the Department of Justice (DOJ) into its I-9 employment verification and E-Verify practices. Faegre Drinker advised the company throughout the investigation, which challenged whether the company had properly complied with federal law in the hiring of foreign nationals with employment authorization through the U.S. Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program. The DOJ’s IER section is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act that prohibits, among other things, citizenship and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, and other unfair documentary practices in I-9 employment verification and E-Verify processes. The charges were ultimately dismissed by the IER.
January 2020