Thread: Economic stimulus prompts debate over illegal-worker screeni

Economic stimulus prompts debate over illegal-worker screening

Some say E-Verify, a system intended to weed out illegal immigrants, should be mandatory in stimulus hiring; others say system is error-ridden.

BY CINDY CARCAMO
The Orange County Register
Friday, March 27, 2009

Speculation about how many illegal immigrants will land construction jobs created by the economic stimulus plan has sparked a renewed debate over the effectiveness of a federal program intended to weed out employees illegally working in the country.

E-Verify allows employers to check the validity of a new hire's social security number to determine whether her or she is authorized to work in the United States. The Department of Homeland Security's computer program is free and made available to employers on a voluntary basis. As of March 7, 467 Orange County businesses had signed up.

In light of the new economic stimulus law, anti-illegal immigrant activists are frustrated that legislators failed to require employers to use E-Verify in the hiring of workers for stimulus jobs, especially in construction and infrastructure projects -- some of which are scheduled to take place in Orange County.

E-Verify should be mandatory for stimulus-funded projects, they say, because the tool helps exclude illegal workers from taking jobs that should go to U.S. citizens or workers with visas.

"E-Verify is our best tool for discouraging illegal employment," said Steve Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Others, including immigrant activists, some business owners and contractor associations, contend the program is full of errors that could hurt legal workers and potentially open up employers to lawsuits.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Associated Builders and Contractors are legally challenging a law that would require employers who do business with the federal government to use E-Verify. The program is scheduled to take effect May 21, but could be postponed because of the legal wrangling.

Even if the law were to take effect, E-Verify would remain optional for state and local governments -- many of which will chose contractors and subcontractors who will then hire their own workers for the stimulus projects.

As it stands now, employers are required to follow local, state and federal labor laws and hire legal workers, but only E-Verify requires the checking of social security numbers.

"In general there are very few states that make any attempt to preclude the employment of illegal immigrants," Camarota said.

Only a few states, such as Arizona and Georgia, have chosen to require businesses to use the program, Camarota said.

E-Verify in Orange County

California does not require contractors or subcontractors to use E-Verify. And that could mean that the up to $212 million in stimulus money expected to fund Orange County Transportation Authority projects along the 91 and other highways will go to contractors not required to use the program, some say.

Caltrans officials, who are in charge of issuing the contracts, say they don't use E-Verify because the state does not require it.

"We don't verify the validity of the social security number because they are not our employees, but the forms must be signed by the contractors who we do business with to certify that the information they are submitting is true and correct," Caltrans spokeswoman Tracey Lavelle said.

Orange County cities such as Costa Mesa and Lake Forest are likely to receive some stimulus money for infrastructure projects. Those two cities don't require contractors to use the program even though council members have taken a tough stance against the hiring of day laborers. Both cities have passed ordinances targeting day laborers and those who seek to employ them.

Lake Forest Councilwoman Marcia Rudolph said she's always emphasized to staff that the contractors and subcontractors who do business with the city must hire legal workers. All cities require city contractors to abide by local, state and federal laws.

However, Rudolph said she's never insisted that the city specifically use E-Verify, adding that she's been assured by city staff that the employers wouldn't use illegal workers anyway.

"Put it this way: In our next meeting on the sixth, I believe I'll bring it up," she said.

Mission Viejo requires E-Verify for city employees and people who work for city contractors. The council unanimously approved the measure in July 2007 to "set an example," then-Mayor Pro Tem John Paul Ledesma said at the time.

The fight over E-Verify

E-Verify started in 1996 as a pilot program in seven states. It was expanded to all 50 states in 2004 and now has more than a 100,000 employers signed up.

About a thousand employers sign up every week, said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services spokeswoman Sharon Rummery.

"We're making our mark," she said. "Why not take the worry out of hiring? It's the best way to protect yourself."

Orange County makes up about 10 percent of the 4,000 or so California businesses that use E-Verify.

Critics, however, say the federal databases are outdated and prevent some people who are authorized to work from employment.

"It's just not a very refined system yet," said Louis Desipio, a professor of political science at UC Irvine who specializes in immigration issues.

Desipio and analysts at the Immigration Policy Center in Washington, D.C. say savvy illegal immigrants will find a way to beat the system by acquiring a social security number and name that match or other means.

In addition, center analysts say E-Verify relies on an error-ridden database that includes 17.8 million discrepancies, of which more than 12 million pertain to native-born U.S. citizens.

"The point is that you or I could get a job and could submit our information through and it could come up that we're not authorized to work because of errors," said Michelle Waslin, the center's senior policy analyst. "People think this is an immigration enforcement tool but in reality it affects every single person who works in the United States."

Jim Rieff, owner of Rieff Construction in Fountain Valley, said he had to wait eight weeks for one of his employees to clear.

"He's a permanent resident who has been living here for 20-something odd years," Rieff said. "It was frustrating for me and for (him) as well, but finally it took."

Rieff's wife, Patty Rieff, who works their E-Verify program, said it took so long to clear up because someone had stolen the employee's information.

The couple registered for E-Verify after hearing that federal contractors may soon be required to use the system. They wanted to be prepared in case they landed a federal job. Patty Rieff said she's only used they system once but said she'd use it again.

"As an employer I really feel it's important that you only hire people who are eligible to work," she said. "It was frustrating but I could see why it took so long."

Rummery said that 96.1 percent of all cases entered bounce back as approved immediately.

That was the case for Judy Fearon, a payroll manager at Steve P. Rados, a Santa Ana-based construction company.

"We've only done one and it was an immediate turn around," Fearon said. "I just hit submit and it came right back."

Contact the writer: 714-445-6688 or ccarcamo@ocregister.com

Please follow link below for full story and ADD YOUR COMMENTS:

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/veri ... rs-program

They don't want it because it works!

I wish people would call ICE everytime they see a crew with illegals there.
I need to frequent the greenhouse a couple of miles away.
There's a guy that hires them for his slaves. Do they know they are being used?

I INTEND ALL CALLING ICE ON EVERY CONSTRUCTION SITE I SEE!!

Desipio and analysts at the Immigration Policy Center in Washington, D.C. say savvy illegal immigrants will find a way to beat the system by acquiring a social security number and name that match or other means.

Hmm...why does this argument sound familiar? Oh, I remember now! Wasn't it : Show me a 10' fence and I will show you an 11' ladder, or some other garbage similiar to that!

There must be an pro-illegal invaders manual lying around somewhere called: 101 arguments and excuses to thwart immigration enforcement measures!

Unfortunately, unless one goes up and demands visa papers, just because they look foreign, have lousy English if any at all, they may not be illegal.
While I would love to do this, I really don't want myself open to lawsuits for false accusations, racism and discrimination, and without proof I cannot bring myself to call ICE, as I really don't want to be know as a nutcase in the FBI files.