Media Center

  • News Articles

    • Groups Urge House Leaders to Improve E-Verify System
      CongressDaily  07/18/2008
      Nearly a dozen corporate and nonprofit organizations sent House leaders a letter Wednesday seeking congressional action to overhaul an electronic system that companies can use to verify the legal status of their workers.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 07/17/08
      07/17/2008
      U.S. employers need an employment verification system that works! That’s why any extension of E-Verify must address the following issues:

  • Press Releases

    • E-Verify Extension Must Not Exceed Three Years
      07/16/2008
      Washington, D.C. – Employer organizations today sent the following letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and all Members of Congress to urge that any extension of the current federal pilot program for employment verification, E-Verify, be no longer than three years and that it include necessary improvements to the system:

  • Facts of the Week

  • News Articles

    • Cindy Butler: R.I. Dodges Bullet of E-Verify
      The Providence Journal  06/28/2008
      Rhode Island recently dodged a bullet when controversial legislation that would have required all state employers to use E-Verify — the federal government’s much criticized citizenship-verification system — was allowed to die in the state Senate.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 06/26/08
      06/26/2008
      The New Employee Verification Act, H.R. 5515 (NEVA) is the best choice for employers and employees.

  • News Articles

    • NEVA to the Rescue
      The Washington Times  06/22/2008
      There is no lack of opinion among members of Congress on how to address illegal immigration. The debate is as heated and divisive as any in recent years.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 06/19/08
      06/19/2008
      Proponents of continuing the status quo in U.S. employment verification have criticized the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA - H.R. 5515) for “reinventing the wheel.”
    • Fact of the Week: 06/12/08
      06/12/2008
      In an excerpt from a press conference earlier this week, DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff defended the E-Verify system:

  • Press Releases

    • HR Initiative Critical of Executive Order Mandating E-Verify
      06/09/2008
      Washington, D.C. – The HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce today criticized a new Executive Order requiring all federal contractors to participate in the E-Verify program. E-Verify is the voluntary federal electronic employment verification system that has been widely criticized for its dependence on paper-based identity documents and its subsequent inability to detect the use of fraudulent identification and stolen Social Security numbers – a common tactic used by unauthorized workers to obtain jobs.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 06/05/08
      06/05/2008
      Did you know the New Employee Verification Act, H.R. 5515, will replace the current failed, paper-based I-9 employment verification process with a mandatory electronic system to verify the work authorization of new hires?
    • Fact of the Week: 5/22/08
      05/22/2008
      Claims by the Department of Homeland Security that reports of E-Verify inaccuracies are overblown don’t stand up to scrutiny. In a recent blog posting, The CATO Institute’s Jim Harper picks apart recent comments by DHS Assistant Secretary for Policy, Stewart Baker. Below are excerpts from Mr. Harper’s column:
    • Fact of the Week: 5/15/08
      05/15/2008
      Did you know the GAO has called USCIS E-Verify accuracy claims “misleading”?
    • Fact of the Week: 5/13/08
      05/13/2008
      Did you know human resource experts oppose DHS’ latest attempt to push participation in E-Verify on U.S. employers?
    • Fact of the Week: 5/7/08
      05/07/2008
      On January 1, 2008, Arizona became the first state to mandate that all employers use E-Verify. Here’s what Arizona’s employers have to say about E-Verify after using the system:

  • News Articles

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  • Press Releases

    • Employers Urge Alternative to E-Verify
      05/06/2008
      Washington, D.C. – In testimony today before the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security, Susan R. Meisinger, President and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) urged Congress to reject the current effort to mandate use of “E-Verify” and focus instead on creating a secure employment verification system through support for H.R. 5515, the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA).

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  • Editorials

    • Mandate Would Hurt Legal Workers Most
      Miami Herald  05/02/2008
      At first glance, the idea seems appealing: Require businesses to use E-Verify, a federal system that checks whether an employee may legally work in this country. Several bills in Congress propose just that. After all, the country has an estimated seven million unauthorized workers.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 4/29/08
      04/29/2008
      Did you know Arizona employers prefer the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA - H.R. 5515) to E-Verify?
    • Fact of the Week: 4/23/08
      04/23/2008
      Did you know the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA - H.R. 5515) offers an alternative to E-Verify that will help prevent the use of fraudulent documents and stolen Social Security numbers?

  • News Articles

    • R.I. Employers Face Possible Mandate on E-Verify
      Providence Business News  04/21/2008
      Human-resources advocate Cindy Butler says she supports creating a federal electronic employment-verification system to curtail illegal immigration, so long as it’s accurate and reliable.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 4/16/08
      04/16/2008
      Did you know the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA - H.R. 5515) offers an alternative to E-Verify that holds the promise of a new and improved employment verification system that can ensure accuracy and reliability?
    • Fact of the Week: 4/9/08
      04/09/2008
      Did you know the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA - H.R. 5515) offers an alternative to E-Verify that builds upon the success of a system already in use by 90% of U.S. employers?

  • Press Releases

    • Employers Applaud Support of Democrats for Replacement of E-Verify
      04/03/2008
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today applauded Representative Dennis Moore (D-KS), Co-Chair for Policy of The Blue Dog Coalition, for joining Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), as a Democratic co-sponsor of H.R. 5515, the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA).

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  • Editorials

    • A Foolish Immigration Purge
      The New York Times  03/27/2008
      Leave it to the Bush administration to throw thousands of law-abiding American workers and companies off a cliff in perilous economic times.

  • Facts of the Week

  • Editorials

    • Immigration: Pandering to Fears is Shameful
      The Clarion-Ledger  03/19/2008
      Which is worse, a politician pandering to fears just to make political hay or a politician passing a law that can't be enforced and makes criminals of law-abiding businesses just to make political hay?

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 3/13/08
      03/13/2008
      Did you know that organizations representing hundreds of thousands of employers in every sector of the U.S. economy have endorsed the “New Employee Verification Act” (NEVA – H.R. 5515)?
    • Fact of the Week: 3/11/08
      03/11/2008
      Did you know there is a 4.1 percent error rate in the Social Security Administration database?
    • Fact of the Week: 3/6/08
      03/06/2008
      Did you know that New Employee Verification Act” (NEVA - H.R. 5515) provides a national employment verification system to help keep illegal workers off the payrolls?

  • Editorials

  • Press Releases

    • Human Resource Experts Testify in Opposition to Mandated Use of “E-Verify” in Kansas
      03/04/2008
      Washington, D.C. – Representatives of the Society for Human Resource Management and the HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce are urging the Kansas State Legislature to resist efforts to mandate the use of the federal employment verification system know as “E-Verify.” In testimony today before the Senate Committee on Federal and State Affairs, Michael P. Aitken, Director of Governmental Affairs at SHRM urged legislators to “reject efforts to mandate the use of E-Verify, which is little more than an inadequate quick-fix solution to a growing national problem.”

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 3/4/08
      03/04/2008
      Did you know that the New Employee Verification Act (NEVA – H.R. 5515) is the only proposal to provide an employment verification system that protects a worker’s identity?

  • News Articles

    • Employers Fret Over Work ID Mandate
      Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN)  03/02/2008
      Tim Hartigan wanted to make sure he wasn't hiring illegal workers at his St. Paul foundry. So he signed up for an electronic identity-check system that has become Minnesota's first major attempt to stop illegal immigration at its magnet: the workplace. Click here to view the full article.
    • Legislation to Create New Mandatory Employee Verification Process Introduced
      Daily Labor Report  02/29/2008
      Legislation (H.R. 5515) that would create a new mandatory national employee verification process for U.S. citizens and immigrants to replace the government's E-Verify program was introduced by four Republican representatives Feb. 28.

  • Press Releases

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  • Press Releases

    • Business Leaders Call for Nation’s First Mandatory Employment Verification System
      02/28/2008
      Alexandria, Va., – Feb. 28, 2008 – The world’s largest association devoted to human resource management today led a coalition of business leaders and HR professionals in endorsing legislation that would create the nation’s first mandatory employment verification system for all U.S. employers.
    • Poll Shows Strong Doubts About Effectiveness of Federal Employment Verification System
      Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research  02/28/2008
      Washington, D.C. - Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and Public Opinion Strategies today released results of a national poll assessing public opinion on employment verification as a tool for stemming illegal immigration.
    • Human Resource Experts Urge Defeat of Kansas “E-Verify” Bill
      02/11/2008
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today urged Kansas state legislators to resist an attempt to mandate the use of E-Verify by state employers, as contained in the omnibus immigration bill, S.B. 458, currently under consideration in the Kansas State Senate. E-Verify is the voluntary federal employment verification system that has been recently mandated by legislative action in Arizona.
    • Human Resource Experts Urge Wisconsin Legislators to Reject “No-Match” Employment Verification Penalties
      02/11/2008
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today urged Wisconsin state legislators to reject A.B. 712 and S.B. 404, two of a series of immigration reform bills pending before the Wisconsin Legislature that would punish employers for not responding within 30 days to the receipt of a “no-match” letter from the federal government.

  • News Articles

    • Kansas Urged to Rethink Immigration Proposals
      Lawrence Journal-World & News (Topeka, KS)  01/27/2008
      Republicans and Democrats in the Kansas Legislature say the best way to take a bite out of illegal immigration is to punish employers who hire workers who are not supposed to be here.

  • Press Releases

    • HR Initiative Urges Restraint by States on National Immigration Policy
      01/17/2008
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today urged state governors to resist any attempt to mandate the use of E-Verify by state employers. E-Verify is the voluntary federal employment verification system that has been recently mandated by legislative action in Arizona and by Executive Order in Minnesota. The Arizona law is currently undergoing a legal challenge.

  • Editorials

    • Our View: Immigration Shouldn't Be Divisive
      The Free Press (Mankato, MN)  01/17/2008
      The most recent proposals advanced by Gov. Tim Pawlenty to crack down on illegal immigration include some that make sense, others that are predictably contentious and still others, which require approval from the Legislature, that are dead on arrival.
    • Fighting Illegal Immigration State by State
      The Columbia Daily Tribune (Columbia, MO)  01/17/2008
      Citizens are angry about the inability of the federal government to deal with illegal immigration, and state politicians are hearing about it, prompting them to "do something" closer to home.

  • Press Releases

    • HR Initiative Calls for Delay of Minnesota E-Verify Order
      01/08/2008
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today urged Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty to rescind enforcement of an executive order directing state government, state contractors and recipients of state business incentives to utilize the federal employment verification system known as “Basic Pilot” (also known as “E-Verify”).

  • Editorials

    • Employer Sanctions Bad Business
      The Payson Roundup (Payson, AZ)  01/01/2008
      The employer sanctions law -- scheduled to begin today, Jan 1, 2008 -- is bad business.

  • News Articles

    • Arizona Employers Focusing on Costs, Effects of New Law
      The Arizona Republic  12/30/2007
      Like many managers in Arizona, Debra Beal knows a far-reaching crackdown on businesses that employ illegal immigrants is at hand. And like thousands across the state, the restaurant manager has yet to make drastic changes at her business.

  • Editorials

    • Immigration Ground Zero
      The Washington Post  12/26/2007
      The new ground zero in the debate over illegal immigration is Arizona, where the nation's toughest and potentially most far-reaching crackdown on undocumented workers and their employers is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1.
    • Will Mega-License Work?
      Arizona Republic  12/12/2007
      Driver's licenses used to be no big deal unless you were nearing your 16th birthday or young enough to be challenged when attempting to do things reserved for adults.

  • Press Releases

    • HR Initiative Urges Continued Challenge to Arizona Employment Verification Law
      12/10/2007
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today urged continued pursuit of a legal challenge to a new Arizona law requiring all employers to use the federal employment verification system known as “Basic Pilot” (also known as “E-Verify”). The case was dismissed on Friday by the U.S District Court for Arizona on procedural grounds.

  • News Articles

    • Absent Federal Reform, States Increasingly Tackling Immigration
      The Dallas Morning News  11/30/2007
      Immigration-related legislation tripled in state legislatures this year, reflecting growing worry and rancor over enforcement and assimilation of the foreign-born, according to a new report released Thursday by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
    • Worker Status Checks’ Errors Called ‘Severe’
      The Los Angeles Times  11/28/2007
      Possible discrimination against foreign-born employees remains a concern for an electronic verification system that ultimately catches a tiny fraction of workers in the United States illegally, immigration officials were told Tuesday.
    • Report: E-Verify Database Fails Standard Test
      Washington Technology  11/26/2007
      The E-Verify program uses a database that does not meet accuracy standards set by Congress, according to a new report from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

  • Press Releases

    • HR Initiative Applauds Hill Conferees for Dropping “Basic Pilot” Rider
      11/15/2007
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today applauded House and Senate conferees for dropping a mandate that all private vendors holding contracts with the Departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development participate in the “Basic Pilot” employment verification system.

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 11/8/07
      11/08/2007
      Did you know . . . As the ABC News affiliate in Washington, D.C. recently reported, fraudulent identity documents – including sophisticated Social Security Cards, Green Cards and Drivers’ Licenses – are readily available almost anywhere.

  • Press Releases

    • Senate Applauded for Effort to Keep “Basic Pilot” Voluntary for Federal Contractors
      10/25/2007
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today applauded the Senate for not including a proposed mandate that all private vendors holding contracts with the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education participate in the “Basic Pilot” employment verification system.
    • Human Resource Professionals Urge Congress to Keep “Basic Pilot” Voluntary for Federal Contractors
      10/16/2007
      Washington, D.C. – In a letter delivered today to all U.S. Senators, twelve leading trade, professional and educational associations representing human resource experts and employers from across all sectors of the U.S. economy called on Congress to improve the federal employment verification system – known as Basic Pilot – before it expires next year, rather than require all federal contractors to participate in the system now.

  • Editorials

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 10/05/07
      10/05/2007
      Did you know . . . The Department of Homeland Security has filed a lawsuit against the State of Illinois seeking to overturn a new Illinois law prohibiting employers operating in the state from participating in the federal employment verification system known as “Basic Pilot” until certain benchmarks for accuracy are met.
    • Fact of the Week: 9/27/07
      09/27/2007
      Did you know . . . A series of appropriations “riders” passed by the House would require federal contractors, as a condition of receiving a contract, to participate in the “Basic Pilot” employment verification system.
    • Fact of the Week: 9/20/07
      09/20/2007
      Did you know . . . Presently, 17 states have enacted employment eligibility verification laws, yet the requirements are not always consistent.

  • Press Releases

    • HR Initiative Files Brief Supporting Employers in Arizona Lawsuit
      09/14/2007
      Washington, D.C. – The Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce today joined a legal effort to overturn a new Arizona law requiring all employers that are located in Arizona, that transact business in Arizona, or that employ one or more persons in Arizona to use the federal employment verification system known as “Basic Pilot” (also known as “E-Verify”).

  • Facts of the Week

    • Fact of the Week: 9/13/07
      09/13/2007
      Did you know . . . According to an August 2007 report by the National Conference of State Legislatures: As of July 2, 2007, no fewer than 1404 pieces of legislation related to immigrants and immigration had been introduced among the 50 state legislatures.
    • Fact of the Week: 9/06/07
      09/06/2007
      Did you know . . . The Social Security Administration issues “No-Match” letters to employers when an employee’s name does not match his or her social security number. This can indicate that an employee is using a false name or social security number – but it may also be due to a clerical error or an outdated record.

  • Press Releases

    • New DHS “No-Match” Rule Must Provide Clarity for Employers
      08/13/2007
      Washington, D.C. – Commenting on the new “no-match” employment verification rules issued Friday by the Department of Homeland Security, the HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce and its members pledged to monitor the program closely to ensure that the new regulations produce the guidance and clarity U.S. employers have needed. No-match letters are issued by the Social Security Administration when an employee’s name does not match his or her social security number.
    • International Biometric Industry Association Calls for Stronger Employment Verification System with Biometrics
      06/29/2007
      With the failure of the comprehensive immigration reform bill to pass the Senate, the International Biometric Industry Association (IBIA) called for Congress, the Administration and certain key industries to continue to work on ways to strengthen our nation's current employment verification system and to use technologies like biometrics that help verify people's work authorization status.
    • HR Initiative to Continue Effort to Secure a Stronger Employment Verification System
      06/28/2007
      Washington, D.C. – Despite today’s Senate cloture vote that apparently derailed the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act, S. 1639, the HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce will continue its efforts to strengthen the employment verification system for U.S. employers.
    • Leading HR Group to Support Key Amendment to Senate Immigration Bill
      Society for Human Resource Management  06/26/2007
      Washington, D.C. -- The following statement by Susan R. Meisinger, President and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) was issued today.

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  • Press Releases

    • SHRM Recommends Stronger Employment Verification System
      The Fratelli Group  06/07/2007
      Washington, D.C. -- In testimony today before the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security, Susan R. Meisinger, President and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) urged Congress to strengthen and improve employment verification measures in the comprehensive immigration reform legislation now under consideration. SHRM is a founding member of the Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce (HR Initiative).

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  • Facts of the Week

    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform - Fact of the Day
      05/17/2007
      Did you know . . . Current immigration reform proposals, if adopted, would require every employed American to undergo a “re-verification” process to confirm that he or she is legally authorized to work in the United States.
    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform - Fact of the Day
      05/16/2007
      Did you know . . . Identity theft is a significant and growing problem in the American work place. When potential employees present false identity documents to employers, there is no legal, secure method available for validating authenticity. Without a Secure Electronic Employment Verification System – which does not exist today, and is not included in current immigration reform legislation – unauthorized workers will continue to come to the United States to seek and obtain jobs.
    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform - Fact of the Day
      05/15/2007
      Did you know . . . Congress is currently debating whether to mandate use of an employment verification system based on the existing “Basic Pilot” as part of comprehensive immigration reform. HR experts predict such a mandate – without first ensuring accuracy of the government databases upon which Basic Pilot relies – will result in a debacle for U.S. employers and continued vulnerability to widespread unauthorized employment.
    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform- Fact of the Day
      05/14/2007
      Did you know. . . As the debate on immigration reform moves to the Senate floor, the nation’s leading human resource experts have outlined significant shortcomings in current proposals to strengthen employment verification – a key to effective immigration reform.
    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform
      05/08/2007
      Did you know . . . In testimony before the House Immigration Subcommittee, Jack Shadley of Swift & Company detailed the shortcomings of the “Basic Pilot” employment verification system. Despite the company’s hiring processes, which include participation in Basic Pilot – and that go above and beyond what is required by federal or state law – Swift was targeted for plant raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform
      Legal Workforce  05/01/2007
      Did you know . . . Following the testimony in last week’s House Immigration Subcommittee, it is clear that there is wide agreement that the current U.S. employment verification system is failing to prevent unauthorized employment, the leading cause of illegal immigration.

  • Editorials

    • Sane Way to a Legal Workforce
      The Boston Globe  04/29/2007
      Give us a break from misguided immigration enforcement. That's the message employers are sending to Congress, adding a much needed voice of reason to the campaign for comprehensive reform.

  • Press Releases

    • HR Expert Group Calls for Stronger Employment Verification Provisions
      The Fratelli Group  04/26/2007
      Washington, D.C. – The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the Human Resource Initiative for a Legal Workforce (HR Initiative) today called on Congress to include enhanced employment verification measures as part of the comprehensive immigration reform legislation now under consideration.

  • Facts of the Week

    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform
      Legal Workforce  04/24/2007
      Did you know... The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 authorized a system that now allows the use of 29 different forms of identification as proof of eligibility to work in the U.S. The wide variety of documents – including drivers’ licenses, birth certificates, foreign passports, refugee travel documents, voter registration cards and school records – has created a system that cannot prevent unauthorized employment, and actually encourages illegal immigrants to engage in fraud and identity theft to obtain jobs.
    • The Key To Effective Immigration Reform
      Legal Workforce  04/17/2007
      Did you know . . . “In the states, immigration-related bills have mushroomed. In 2006, more than 570 pieces of legislation were introduced in state legislatures around the country. At least 84 bills were enacted, more than double the number enacted in 2005.” National Conference of State Legislatures LEGISBRIEF (February 2007)

  • News Articles

  • Press Releases

    • Greater Security in Employment Verification the Goal of HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce
      The Fratelli Group  03/07/2007
      Washington, D.C. – The nation’s leading human resource organizations, representing hundreds of thousands of HR professionals, as well as thousands of U.S. employers from every sector of the economy, today launched an initiative to help stem the tide of illegal immigration by bringing greater security and reliability to the nation’s employment verification system.

  • News Articles

    • New HR Coalition Seeks Reliable Employment Verification System
      SHRM Online  03/07/2007
      With more than 30 immigration-related bills circulating in Congress, a new coalition of HR groups—including the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)—is urging lawmakers to create an employment verification system that does not require employers to become enforcement arms of the government.