http://www.wnct.com/midatlantic/nct/new ... -0043.html

Immigration: Caught In The Net

Friday, Jan 26, 2007 - 11:14 PM

Seth Browning
Anchor

ECU is just one of many universities across the state that's now screening its perspective employees through an employment verification program.

It's a program to prevent illegal immigrants from working in the US. But it's a system some say has flaws..

It works like this: employers log onto this site, 3 days after they hire an employee. Then they enter the employee's name, social security number and within seconds they can find out if that person can legally work in the US.

But employers are finding that it red flags those who are currently going through the immigration process.

Nine on Your Side wants to take a closer look at this and other problems with the system.

You might have gotten that big job, but one website may be shining the light on your citizenship, “It looks for documentation. Documentation that establishes not only a person's citizenship, but their employment eligibility."

ECU employment coordinator Teresa Shook is talking about an immigration website which checks on all its employees. She says they've screened 227 people so far and the program flagged only five, “So I bring the employee in and I say we've got a little issue to clear up."

While the government says the system may be useful in screening applicants in places like ECU. Some critics disagree. Saying there may be flaws in the system.

Javier Castillo with the Council of Hispanic issues says a simple database might not handle such a complex issue, “It could probably keep you and me out of it. If it's not updated and 100 percent." Castillo says a mix up of surnames and the long citizenship process could backlog the database. Leaving new hires scrambling to save their job, “The person, the individual has eight days to straighten out the issue when he doesn't know where they got that information."

Meantime shook says their just following the law...and trying to work out the kinks as they go along, "So many passwords.”

This is currently a pilot program. However officials say in 2008 all North Carolina businesses will have to use the site.