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03-20-2014, 12:50 PM #1
How Painful Can It Get? Recent Penalties for Noncompliance with Immigration Law
How Painful Can It Get? Recent Penalties for Noncompliance with Immigration Law
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March 19, 2014
Christine Mehfoud
I-9 Fines
[Editor’s Note: Today’s blog is courtesy of Christine D. Mehfoud, a Director with Spotts Fain, PC in Richmond, VA.]
Compliance-minded companies always want to know, “What’s the risk of non-compliance?” Or, put another way, “how much will it hurt if we don’t get it right?” For those companies still wondering whether spending a little now to implement a solid immigration compliance program is a sound investment, some of the recent immigration-related penalties provide compelling reasons to invest in training and compliance.
Remember − all employers have immigration-related compliance obligations regardless of whether they employ any foreign nationals. Some of the companies suffering significant penalties identified below never even had any unauthorized workers in their workforce, but merely fell short on their obligation to verify employment eligibility (the Form I-9 process) or discriminated against certain individuals during the Form I-9 process.
Penalties imposed in any given case are always fact-dependent, and of course, the employer’s response to the investigation can significantly impact the outcome of any investigation. With that in mind, taking a look at the recent penalties imposed provides a good perspective of the risk.
Generally, immigration-related violations risk the following potential penalties:
- Prison Time
- from up to six months for knowingly hiring an illegal worker to 10 years for harboring
- Civil Fines
- up to $16,000 per worker
- Asset Forfeiture
- Debarment
- Loss of Business License
- Lost Productivity
- For example, after a Form I-9 inspection in 2009, American Apparel lost 40% of its workforce and suffered significant financial losses that it attributed to lost productivity, causing its stock to drop 41% after reporting losses in the second quarter of 2010.
- Attorneys’ Fees
- Negative Publicity
- And often, other crimes such as tax fraud, social security fraud, money laundering, identity theft, bank fraud and false statements are uncovered during what begins as an immigration-related investigation.
To put these penalties in real terms, below are examples from recent investigations:
Monetary Penalties Prison Time Charge Company Date $34 Million
Visa fraud (misuse of B-1 visa) Infosys October 2013 $275,000
Discrimination in employment eligibility verification process
Macy’s
June 2013 $400,000
1 count of knowingly accepting a false document
McDonald’s(Wichita-based franchisee)
December 2012 $2 Million
Failing to comply with employment eligibility verification requirements (Form I-9 Process)Failing to act on SSA No-Match Letters
ABC Professional Services, Inc.
July 2012 $625,000
Failing to comply with employment eligibility verification requirements (Form I-9 Process)
Infinite Visions
July 2012 Over $2.7 Million 3 years probation (owners)5 years probation (company) Knowingly hiring and aiding and abetting (owner)Harboring (company)
Aguila Farms
November 2011 Over $3.5 Million 15 years (owner)5 years probation (company) Conspiracy to smuggle, transport and/or harbor, money laundering and tax fraud (owner) Conspiracy to smuggle and harbor (company)
YCL(The Gateway Hotel)
October 2011 $290,400
Discrimination in employment eligibility verification process
Farmland Foods
August 2011 $1 Million
Failing to comply with employment eligibility verification requirements (non-compliant electronic Form I-9 system)(no unauthorized workers and employer had used E-Verify for years)
Abercrombie & Fitch
September 2010 $4.5 Million
Knowingly hiring and continuing to employ Pilgrim’s Pride
December 2009 $26 Million 27 years (former CEO)23 months (supervisor)1 year + 2 years supervised release (manager)2 years probation (manager) Aiding and abetting in harboring (supervisor)Bank fraud, false statements, money laundering (company)
Agriprocessors
June 2010 and March 2009 Over $20 Million 16 managers and executives convicted and fined Knowingly hiring and continuing to employ; Overtime violations;Conspiring to harbor illegal aliens (managers)
IFCO Systems
December 2008
- See more at: http://www.lawlogix.com/blog/how-pai....RkbOn8lw.dpufNO AMNESTY
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- Prison Time
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03-20-2014, 04:30 PM #2
Then they let the illegal employees go to look for another company to work for.
I wonder if they just follow the illegals around for the fines or if the illegals call them and say "Hey, I am working over here now" It is after all, about money for the government to spend. Just thinking.
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