Duke Facing Accusations of Illegal Workers

Last Update: 11:00 am


Duke Energy could soon be answering to accusation of employing illegal workers.

According to recently released documents, illegal immigrants were hired by Sunbelt Insulation, a contractor for Duke Energy. The immigrants worked in some of the energy company's power plants which provide electricity for Tri-State homes and businesses.

The local IBEW Union says both Duke along with various federal officials are aware of the documents but have done nothing.

The union has scheduled a news conference 10 o'clock this morning to discuss the issue.

This morning, Duke released a letter they sent to the IBEW in response to their allegations. The letter reads:

"As you know, last week, we had a conversation concerning the issues brought to Duke Energy's attention concerning the hiring practices of an independent contractor, SunBelt Insulation. Duke Energy takes these matters very seriously, and immediately took action to address these concerns when you first disclosed them to us several months ago.

First, we referred this matter to the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) to investigate the potential falsification of immigration documents. Second, we initiated an investigation by an independent third-party to investigate Sunbelt Insulation's hiring practices. The independent auditor found no evidence that Duke Energy had knowledge of any illegal workers hired, nor were they able to substantiate that any of the workers hired by SunBelt Insulation to perform work for Duke Energy were unauthorized to work in the United States. Third, our Ethics Office conducted an internal investigation, which did not substantiate the allegations.

As noted above, Duke Energy immediately referred this matter to the federal authorities, ICE. We have cooperated with the agency fully and have not received any indication of concerns from ICE about Duke Energy or our vendor management practices.

We have been proactive in educating all of our vendors that we expect only authorized workers to be assigned to Duke Energy work. Specifically, in our agreement with SunBelt Insulation:
We require compliance in all respects with all applicable laws, including the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 and Form I-9 requirements.

SunBelt Insulation must perform all required employment eligibility and verification checks and maintain all required employment records.

We have the right to inspect, copy, and audit relevant records to ensure compliance.

We have an audit clause that allows us to use a third-party attorney to review Sunbelt's I-9s. We currently require regular I-9 audits for SunBelt.

Any I-9 errors detected by the audit must be corrected immediately. The worker in question is immediately removed, and is not eligible to be assigned to Duke Energy projects until an I-9 is properly completed.

The new contract signed with SunBelt Insulation requires the use of E-Verify, the Internet-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration, to electronically verify employment eligibility.

Based on these swift actions taken by our company and the lack of findings of any wrong-doing, the investigation was closed. However, if you have additional information, as always, we are ready to act on your concerns to protect Duke Energy's integrity and to always follow all applicable laws and regulations.

Sincerely, Jim O'Connor VP of Labor Relations Duke Energy"



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