Thread: San Diego County considers job screening for legal status

County considers job screening for legal status

Proposal would explore using E-Verify during hiring process

By Christopher Cadelago
6:27 p.m., June 21, 2011

San Diego County may join a growing list of government agencies to enroll in a federal database used to check the legal status of prospective workers.

The proposal from Supervisors Dianne Jacob and Bill Horn would direct county officials to explore the feasibility of using E-Verify during the hiring process. Critics contend the database is unreliable, stifles business and could usher in widespread discrimination.

E-Verify is a web-based tool that compares information from an individual’s eligibility form to data kept by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. Starting with new county hires would allow administrators to gauge the system’s effectiveness before potentially expanding it to include businesses that contract with the county, Jacob said.

“The sad and difficult truth is this: many people enter the U.S. illegally looking for work. I believe a primary way to deter illegal immigration is to turn off the jobs magnet,â€

This really should be a no-brainer.

San Diego County may join a growing list of government agencies to enroll in a federal database used to check the legal status of prospective workers.

What's the big deal??? I am an American citizen and I had to submit fingerprints for my job, and so did my 18 year old for his! Only illegal aliens have their identities to hide. It makes NO sense for this to be a "debate". FINGERPRINT or DON'T APPLY FOR A JOB! Simple as that!

The proposal from Supervisors Dianne Jacob and Bill Horn would direct county officials to explore the feasibility of using E-Verify during the hiring process. Critics contend the database is unreliable, stifles business and could usher in widespread discrimination.

I just called and emailed my support to the offices of Dianne Jacob and Bill Horn. This beautiful city is NOT going to be turned into a ghetto like Mexico!

REGION: County to adopt E-Verify program help to detect illegal workers

By EDWARD SIFUENTES esifuentes@nctimes.com
Friday, June 24, 2011 7:00 am

The Board of Supervisors may soon require new county employees to be screened through the federal E-Verify program to make sure job candidates are legally eligible to work in the country.

E-Verify, or the Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification System, is an online program that works by comparing employee information, such as Social Security numbers, to records kept by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. It is primarily aimed at detecting illegal immigrant job applicants.

The supervisors will vote Tuesday on a proposal by Supervisors Bill Horn and Dianne Jacob to screen future county employees and determine whether county contractors should also be required to use the program.

Under the proposal, county administrators would be asked to report to the supervisors whether the program is usable within 90 days.

"The E-Verify proposal is asking the chief administrative officer to look into potential benefits of the program," Horn said. "I have always been interested in programs and policies that protect businesses and taxpayers and the reality is that both businesses and local governments can unknowingly hire ineligible employees."

The program is used by about 225,000 employers nationwide, including the federal government and its subcontractors. Some cities and counties have already adopted the program.

In March, Escondido joined several Southwest Riverside County cities, including Murrieta, Temecula and Lake Elsinore, in adopting E-Verify in some form. Escondido requires it for anyone doing business with the city. Other cities require using E-Verify as a condition of obtaining a business license.

However, various libertarian and immigrant rights groups say there are problems with the E-Verify system. Immigrant rights advocacy organizations say the program can falsely identify people who are legally allowed to work in the country as ineligible.

E-Verify had an error rate of 4.1 percent, according to a study released in 2010 by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. That means that in 96 percent of the cases, the program accurately determined a person's work eligibility status, according to the study.

The study, which looked at the program's caseload between September 2007 and June 2008, also reported that E-Verify was able to find illegal workers only about half of the time. That means it detected only one of every two illegal immigrant workers, primarily because individuals used "identity fraud that cannot be detected by E-Verify," such as an illegal immigrant worker using someone else's identity.

A bill making its way through Congress would make E-Verify mandatory nationwide. The bill, House Resolution 2164, or the Legal Workforce Act would require all employers to use the program.

Immigrant rights advocates said the program would hurt people looking for work.

"Due to high error rates, the government itself estimates that mandatory E-Verify will force between 3 and 4.1 million workers to try to get their records corrected by a government agency or lose their jobs, and another 770,000 will actually lose their jobs," said Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, a Washington-based immigrant rights organization.

Supporters of E-Verify, such as Rep. Brian Bilbray, R-Solana Beach, say the program would help curb illegal immigration by denying illegal workers the jobs that attract them to the country. He said that the program has become increasingly accurate since it was implemented.

"As one of San Diego's largest employers with more than 16,000 employees, I applaud the County of San Diego's leadership in protecting the American worker," Bilbray said.

Under the county's proposal, county administrators would study how E-Verify works and could make it mandatory for contractors who do business with the county.

"Upon approval of this proposal by the board, we would explore implementing E-Verify at the county level," Horn said. "We would then make an informed decision on whether or not to expand the use once we have had time to evaluate it."

Contact staff writer Edward Sifuentes at 760-740-3511

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcou ... z1Q9QM33aa