Businesses given hand in filtering out illegal hires


Federal program helps employers verify citizenship status of potential workers


By Dave Berns

Thursday, Nov. 24, 2011 | 2 a.m.


Las Vegas restaurateur Justin Micatrotto has embraced a new program linking federal immigration officials with businesses throughout the country to reduce the hiring of undocumented workers.

The goal: increase employer verification of the citizenship status of new hires without the heavy hammer of workplace raids conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, or ICE.

“You have a responsibility as a business owner to make sure you’re going through all the reasonable expectations before you put a person on the floor,â€