Impact of Immigration Reform on Human Resources
Why is understanding CIR important to employers?
Proposed revisions would include an expanded scope of legal channels for current undocumented workers to gain legal work status within the U.S. An unprecedented compliance burden and likely increase to employer penalties for non-compliance will be necessary to enforce these new regulations. In addition, revisions to the employment verification process will create a further strain on internal company resources. There is also the possibility of a labor force disruption if a company has current employees that do not meet eligibility requirements.
What measures can an employer take now?
We are advising our clients to monitor the unfolding events closely and begin reviewing their internal hiring procedures. Once passed, the new legislation will result in an urgent need for companies to modify their internal hiring and screening processes. For those that employ a large number of low-skilled workers, an extensive revision to their hiring practices is likely and will result in the processing of a substantial amount of documentation to ensure their compliance.
Our "Introduction to Comprehensive Immigration Reform" reference sheet provides a brief overivew of CIR and expected implications for HR departments.