Many businesses sponsoring H-1B specialty occupation worker or L-1 intra-company transfer petitions have experienced the frustration of unfair denials. Now, Information published in the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsmen Annual Report 2014 (“Report”) confirms that appeals from these determinations are almost always an exercise in futility.
Cases that are not approved can be appealed to
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which has been sending investigators from its Office of Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) to conduct site visits at the offices of H-1B petitioners, has expanded its investigations to include petitions for L-1 non-immigrant visas. The L-1 visa enables a U.S. employer to transfer an executive or
An appeals court decision granting six undocumented workers standing to recover wages owed by their employer under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) will stand after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the case on March 14.
The FLSA prescribes standards for minimum wage and overtime pay and provides employees with an avenue to
The Colorado Division of Labor is conducting more than a thousand audits on employers each year to enforce Colorado’s Employment Verification Law. The Division has conducted approximately 200 complaint-based audits, 5,400 random audits, and 650 re-audits (more than 6,000 audits total) of employers with employees in Colorado since the Law went into effect on January
While Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that it stopped issuing I-94 arrival/departure cards on May 21, 2013 (instead, the foreign passport is stamped and the entry is recorded electronically; the record can be accessed online), some land ports of entry still issue actual I-94 cards. Despite the new system, foreign nationals have reported
The Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs released on March 11th the April 2013 visa bulletin (available at http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5900.html). Although the bulletin reports no significant progress was made in the employment-based categories, there was some progression. Progress in priority date movement in employment-based categories includes EB-2 China moving from February 15, 2008 to
AUTHOR: Melina Villalobos
Employers are well aware that just one work-related accident or illness can result in medical expenses, rehabilitation services, and liability compensation. This can be the case whether the accident or illness involves a legal or illegal worker. A recent Nebraska Supreme Court decision is a reminder that undocumented aliens also may bring
AUTHOR: Melina V. Villalobos
Much of the focus regarding employee verification compliance centers on the mechanics of I-9 completion and the possibility of high civil penalties for noncompliance. However, as employers strive to ensure compliance with employment verification laws, they must also ensure that they are not discriminating against individuals who are authorized to work.
Reverse discrimination is defined as the practice or policy of favoring individuals belonging to groups known to have been discriminated against previously. Reverse discrimination is often alleged, but difficult to prove. A recent class action settlement, however, has revealed that a documented preference for hiring Latino workers who are ineligible to work in the U.S.
The Department of Justice has announced a record anti-discrimination settlement agreement with Farmland Foods, Inc. involving allegations that the company engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination during the I-9 process. According to the DOJ, Farmland, a major U.S. producer of pork products, allegedly required newly hired non-U.S. citizens and some foreign-born U.S. citizens