Thread: Immig. Groups Fought Over House Amends. to Require E-Verify

Immigration Groups Fought Over House Amendment to Require Employers Verify Worker Status

By Daphne Eviatar
February 12, 2009
The Washington Independent

Among the many provisions of the $800–plus billion stimulus bill that were hotly debated and horse-traded behind closed doors, one that remained largely under the radar through the negotiations would have forced employers receiving stimulus money to use a controversial federal computer system to verify that all of its employees are legal U.S. workers. Although preliminary indications are that the requirement did not make it into the final version, the battle over E-Verify is far from over.

When it came to the stimulus bill, advocates on both sides of the issue fought hard behind the scenes. Many anti-illegal immigration groups favor the system, run jointly by the Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration. E-verify allows employers to electronically submit Social Security numbers for new hires and existing employees. If there is a match, the employee is considered eligible to work. If not, the employee and the employer have to go through various procedures to try to verify eligibility for employment. Supporters say that requiring all employers spending federal money to use the system is critical to ensuring that the stimulus creates jobs for legal U.S. workers, not for illegal immigrants. But immigrants’ rights groups have pushed back hard, saying that E-Verify is a cumbersome system riddled with flaws and based on inaccurate databases that can all too easily destroy legal U.S. workers’ ability to get or keep their jobs.

“A lot of people look at E-verify as strictly an immigration enforcement tool,â€

More distortion, lies and slander from the typical sources.

But the anecdotal evidence suggests more serious problems

"Anecdotal evidence." How incredibly weak. While not perfect, E-Verify is a great tool against illegal immigration, and this is why the OBL detests it.

E-verifiy works, how about listening to people who have used it, and STOP making up your own crap you know nothing about.....unless your motive is that it works and that is why you don't want it!!

E-Verify system works, Pickens County officials sayPICKENS

COUNTY — Some legal measures that took effect Jan. 1 in South Carolina place added restrictions on illegal workers, because employers now are required to use E-Verify or other federal work authorization programs.

A state law now requires all public employers and public contractors employing more than 500 people to electronically check and verify the employment eligibility of new employees by accessing a federal database.

The Pickens County Council voted last year to require that all new county employees be documented as legal workers. The county also required that all vendors doing business with Pickens County certify that they are not knowingly using illegal workers on any county projects.

Margaret Thompson, a Pickens County resident who supported the state law, said information she has received from county officials indicates that it works.

“Pickens County decided last summer to go beyond the state requirements and immediately require anyone working for and doing business with this county refrain from using illegal workers,â€

[quote] Every single person who gets a job would have to be run through the system, which has a lot of errors. And employers don’t always use it correctly. So there could be very bad consequences for us citizens and legal workers.â€

It's also my understanding that E-Verify is absolutely FREE and available to anyone who wants to use it. There is no justification for anyone not to use E-Verify unless they do not want to know the if the person they are going to hire is legally permitted to work in this country or not!

Mercy, mercy use E-Verify, last evening I met a restaurant owner who does use it. She said her husband is Arab and she does not want to get into any trouble. Amazingly she said the use of the system is great. A picture comes up of the individual, she said. So you know who you are hiring. Go ICE and DHS, go.