iCIMS Hire Expectations™

If you have not already heard the buzz, state requirements for E-Verify are growing by leaps and bounds. E-Verify has been required nationwide for the employment of federal contractors and subcontractors for a while now. Many states also require E-Verify for new hires made by large employers.

Other states are implementing laws that expand on existing requirements. For example, as of December 1, 2012 Virginia joined the list of states with mandatory E-Verify requirements. In January 2013 four more states, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee, are implementing or expanding E-Verify requirements. Further, many congressional Republicans are calling for E-Verify requirements covering all businesses in all states – public and private.

To see a color coded map showing the latest state-by-state E-Verify requirements, click here.  

Perhaps, we should step back. If your firm does not do any federal contracting and is not in a state with expanded requirements, maybe you do not really understand E-Verify. Perhaps, you don’t think E-Verify is something about which your firm needs to worry. There, you are wrong. E-Verify is definitely something all employers (large or small, with or without government contracts, public or privately held) need to keep on their radar!

What is E-Verify?

E-Verify is an electronic database maintained by the Department of Homeland Security that compares employee’s I9 information to information maintained by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. 

According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services:

“The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 prohibits employers from knowingly hiring illegal workers. To comply with this law, employers must collect information regarding an employee’s identity and employment eligibility and document that information on Form I-9. An employee must provide certain information on the form, such as name and date of birth, as well as present supporting documents.

While Form I-9 requires employers to collect information, there was no way for employers to verify that the information employees provide is valid or that the documents presented are genuine—that is, until E-Verify. E-Verify offers employers a powerful tool in protecting themselves against those who try to cheat the system.

By adding E-Verify to the existing Form I-9 employment eligibility verification process, a company can benefit from the peace of mind of knowing that it maintains a legal workforce”.

Beyond just peace of mind, the number of states requiring E-Verify for all employers/employees is growing each day.

How Can I Prepare for E-Verify?

E-Verify is not something any employer can ignore. Even if E-Verify is not effecting you today, it will soon and you need to prepare now. Here are some things you can do to begin preparing now: 

• •         Consider proactive voluntary E-Verify enrollment. Think about the costs and benefits associated with proactive enrollment and consult your corporate council to help make a decision that meets your organization’s needs.

• •         Assume E-Verify will happen and plan now: Create a formal E-verify implementation project plan that includes a company-wide roll out with updates to policy and procedure guides, updates to your onboarding software, manager and HR staff training, etc.  

• •         Audit your existing I9 Records: Auditing your existing I9 records will help you to identify areas of weakness and early take action to correct any problematic processes related to compliance.

• •         Weigh the benefits of using an electronic I9 and E-Verify Software: An I9 and E-Verify software will keep your records organized while streamlining compliance with features like error checking, audit trails, reminders, remote hiring capabilities, instant E-Verify responses, and more.

• Watch E-Verify news for all states in which your company conducts business: This is not as much of a challenge as one might think. Google Alerts are a beautiful thing! If that does not satisfy, you can also find valuable information on I9 and E-Verify News page provided by iCIMS’ I9 and E-Verify partner, Tracker Corp.

With the rate at which E-Verify requirements are expanding, even employers not previously impacted by E-Verify must take a proactive approach and begin preparing now so you don’t get caught off guard when the time comes. Remember, too, iCIMS and our partner, Tracker Corp., are here to help as you navigate the complex waters of employment compliance.

It’s that season again when the fall colors are on display. In addition to the typical autumnal oranges and yellows, this year – being an election year – also offers plenty of red, white, and blue. At the end of the season, we are left with both raking up the leaves and removing our political opinions from our front yards.

As the news media and other organizations vet the candidates’ history and experience, we are left to decide what is important and what can be ignored. Although the type of information and the origin is different for political candidates than it is for employee candidates, what is similar is the challenge of effectively processing what you hear, see and believe. Unlike the political process, in the world of human resources HR professionals have to deal with the employment law, EEOC guidance, I-9 verification, etc. Employers should first consider the EEOC guidance when reviewing background check information that could be used to make a negative hiring decision. Here are a few things employers should keep in mind when analyzing a candidate’s background check:

1.The facts or circumstances surrounding the offense or conduct.
2.The number of offenses for which the individual was convicted.
3.Older age at the time of conviction, or release from prison.
4.Evidence that the individual performed the same type of work, post-conviction with the same or a different employer, with no known incidents of criminal conduct.
5.The length and consistency of employment history before and after the offense or conduct. 
6.Rehabilitation efforts, e.g., education/training. 
7.Employment or character references and any other information regarding fitness for the particular position
8.Whether the individual is bonded under a federal, state, or local bonding program

Although the EEOC guidelines can be viewed as another hurdle for the HR professional it does not need to suspend pragmatic thinking. As a matter of fact, adjudication tools to assist a company with these steps are now standard in the industry.

Now back to the political season. Wouldn’t it be great if our political polls used the same red, yellow and green process we typically see in the workplace?

This guest blog is by Brian Fancher, Director of Best Practices at Tracker Corp.

While at first glance the Employment Eligibility Verification Form (Form I-9) may appear to be a harmless formality for onboarding new employees, most HR professionals nowadays aren’t fooled.  If you follow the HR compliance landscape, then you know that the I-9 matters. Arguably, it’s one of the most costly and complicated one page forms in the universe. After all, the government publishes a 69 page manual and maintains an extensive website in order to instruct the masses on how to complete it correctly.

And why does completing an I-9 correctly matter? Well, the bottom line is that I-9s that contain errors or are missing or incomplete can affect an organization's bottom line. Instead of the high-profile immigration raids of years past, government officials have been focusing less on rounding up undocumented workers and more on targeting unscrupulous employers through the use of Form I-9 audits and investigations of their hiring practices. This shift in I-9 enforcement strategy is what people are calling the Obama administration’s “quiet immigration raid” policy. And regardless of how quiet it is, I-9 audits and fines are on the rise.

According to recent testimony from Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, since Fiscal Year 2009, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICS), the arm of DHS that oversees I-9 compliance, has “audited more than 6,000 employers, debarred 441 companies and individuals, and imposed more than $76 million in financial sanctions—more than the total amount of audits and debarments during the entire previous administration.” Last year alone, ICE conducted I-9 audits on over 2,740 employers and imposed an average fine of $110,000, up to $1100 per form in error. These are impressive numbers, indeed.

When you add these I-9 challenges to the ever expanding state and federally mandated E-Verify requirements, employers start to realize they need a serious tool to help manage the employment verification process. That’s where software can really help.

A good software solution will provide a mistake-proof way to comply with Form I-9 employment eligibility verification and E-Verify regulations. Of course, when selecting a software provider, you will want to choose a solution that enables the paperless preparation, signing, management, auditing and virtual storage of all your Form I-9 records. Some Form I-9 management systems, including Tracker I-9™, offer integration options across systems, including E-Verify, allowing employers to submit information about new hires seamlessly, securely, and with confidence in real time. Further, if you leverage an onboarding solution to manage new hires, make sure the vendor can partner with Form I-9 management systems.

Most vendors out there can deliver on these basic requirements, so consider a provider who goes above and beyond the basics. Look for intuitive, personalizable dashboard interfaces that offer one-click access to daily to-do items, regulatory updates, and insightful features--including best practice videos. Your I-9/E-Verify software should make error-free easy by:

• Instantly checking errors and ensuring no missed or invalid data
• Automatically alerting to deadlines (signatures, re-verification, tentative non-confirmations (TNCs), timely purging and more)
• Integrating data from your employee records systems, to pre-fill I-9s and speed a paperless transition
• Preventing discriminatory over-documentation in Section 2 by automatically showing only the ID docs applicable to status
• Automating the E-Verify process, with configurable options per worksite
• Generating easily-personalized reports that improve management and simplify audits
• Making remote hiring easy and secure, with notary-faxable technology that integrates with the electronic I-9 system Providing an intuitive user-friendly interface, ensuring I-9 managers complete the process correctly and consistently

If your organization is looking to help keep track of all the I-9 documents, E-Verify deadlines, and the ever changing I-9 compliance landscape, you will want to strongly consider leveraging technology to implement a trustworthy electronic I-9 and E-Verify management solution. There are so many advantages to be gained, going electronic makes perfect sense, now more than ever.

Disclaimer: The content of this blog does not constitute direct legal advice and is designed for informational purposes only. Information provided through this website should never replace the need for involving informed counsel on your employment and immigration issues.

 Today's guest blog post comes to you from Nick Fishman, Chief Marketing Officer and EVP of EmployeeScreenIQ. EmployeeScreenIQ is an industry leading global employment screening resource, as well as a valued iCIMS partner.

As recruiters and HR professionals, you know better than most the flood of resumes you’ve received since the economy took a turn for the worst.  You are evaluating more candidates for fewer jobs and your margin for error is nil.  Therefore, hiring the right candidate the first time is paramount to your success.  Many organizations have tightened their hiring standards in general and become much more vigilant with the background screening process.  They are looking for anything that will affirm their belief in a candidate or adverse information that will warn them of possible trouble.  We’ve seen significant spikes in crime rates over the last year and in turn, that has impacted the number of job candidates with criminal convictions. 

So now, here’s another unforeseen issue that has risen in light of our economy.  States throughout the country are considering the early release of thousands of prison inmates because it cost too much money to keep them incarcerated.  The state of California, for instance, plans to early release as many as 40,000 inmates to make up for budget shortfalls. 

 
It is our sincere hope that these individuals will have been rehabilitated and will begin to seek gainful employment, however recidivism rates would suggest otherwise.  If this trend persists, it becomes even more important for employers to rely upon employment background checks to help them make informed hiring decisions. 

However, this issue becomes a double-edged sword for employers.  There is certainly liability to organizations for making bright-line hiring decisions based on the presence of a criminal record.  Employers are encouraged to evaluate each piece of adverse information on its own merit.  They should consider how long ago the conviction occurred, job relatedness, the seriousness of the crime, whether the person is a repeat offender, etc.  Standards should definitely vary based on the type of job available and the industry.  Organizations should ensure that they continue to make consistent decisions.

This will be an even more impactful issue as the economy improves in the coming year.  You’ll be hiring more people for more jobs and won’t have the same luxury of time to dedicate to each candidate as you do now.  Start developing and, or refining your process now.  The effort will pay off in the near future!