Thread: Program filters out illegal workers

http://www.recordonline.com/archive/200 ... 06-08.html

June 08, 2006

Program filters out illegal workers

By Kristina Wells
Times Herald-Record
kwells@th-record.com
Washingtonville - Abdel Hak can see the disappointment in their faces.

They're dedicated. They're hard working. And they're willing to work for the paltry $7-an-hour wage at Dunkin' Donuts in Monroe.

But legally, they can't work in this country. So, Hak can't hire them. And for the past two months - since screening new hires through a federal test program - he's seen more disappointed faces.

"We've had to turn a lot of people down," said Hak, an immigrant from Morocco. "Most of the workers are competent. They show respect for the job. It's really hard."

Effective June 1, Dunkin' Donuts corporate office mandated that all stores check new hires through the voluntary federal Basic Pilot Program. Hak said the Monroe store he manages started screening in April.

The voluntary program, established in 1997, is designed to help employers discern the legal working status of new hires by running the person's information through a database containing 425 million Social Security records and 65 million immigration files.

"We were compelled to participate in the Basic Pilot Program because of the difficulty faced by employers for screening new hires within the confines of the law," said Dunkin' Brands Chief Legal Officer Stephen Horn in an e-mailed statement.

Employers cannot screen a person until they've already been hired and current employees are exempt. Dunkin' outlets in Massachusetts and New Hampshire have started posting notices, required under program participation, that read: "Our hiring policy is simple: We follow the law! This company hires lawful workers only - U.S. citizens or nationals and non-citizens with valid work authorization - without discrimination."

That notice has not yet appeared in the half a dozen stores in the Monroe and Newburgh areas.

There are more than 6,200 employers - mostly private-sector companies - using the program. There's roughly a million system inquiries a year, 85 percent of which come back validating a person's work status, said Chris Bentley, spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. And it works on an honor system since CIS doesn't routinely check to make sure employers are terminating the recent hire, he said.

The program at its core gives immigrant advocates like Tricia Kakalec pause.

"My concerns would be accuracy, privacy, whether its applied in a neutral manner to all employees or whether it's applied to a particular ethnicity or do they use it for all workers," said Kakalec, executive director of the Workers' Rights Law Center of New York, a Kingston-based group that provides employment education and legal services to low-wage and illegal workers. "It seems to me there could be a lot of serious issues."

This is great, just great. My neck of the woods and even closer to where that woman was horrifically murdered last year by the ILLEGAL lawn care guy!

My concerns would be accuracy, privacy, whether its applied in a neutral manner to all employees or whether it's applied to a particular ethnicity or do they use it for all workers," said Kakalec, executive director of the Workers' Rights Law Center of New York, a Kingston-based group that provides employment education and legal services to low-wage and illegal workers. "It seems to me there could be a lot of serious issues."

I just do not see where everything has to be so gosh darn complicated. Every business should check every potential employee to confirm that they are in fact legally able to work in this country. It really is just that simple. If there is a problem with the SS number given that person should be given 30 days, or whatever, to clear up the problem. As we all know it is quite possible that many, many Americas will have problems with their SS numbers as they have been pilfered by illegals and they may be completely unaware of that fact, not to mention the government is entirely inept anyway.

For instance my sister just got a notice from the IRS that she owes them money. Her name is on the letter but it is not her SS number. Turns out it is my brother's SS number. How exactly does that happen? My point is any system set up by the government is going to be loaded with errors and there will in fact be people who are legally able to work in this country that have a problem come up, but at that point they will be aware there is a problem and get it straightened out.