documentation-i-9The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced today they have filed a lawsuit against the University of California, San Diego Medical Center alleging workplace discrimination.  The DOJ’s investigation concluded the medical center engaged in a pattern or practice of requiring more documentation during the employment verification or re-verification process from non-US citizens than it required from US citizens.

The DOJ is seeking a court order that would prohibit future discrimination by UCSD Medical Center, monetary damages for individuals harmed by the medical center’s actions, and civil penalties.

Workplace Discrimination – More is Not Better

Employers and HR personnel who are uninformed about the Form I-9, employment eligibility verification process may mistakenly feel that asking for more documentation is a good thing thing…making sure they are covering all the bases.  In fact, the opposite is true.  You cannot ask for additional documentation based on an individual’s citizenship status or national origin. Doing so could put your business at risk of an employer discrimination lawsuit, in violation of the anti-discrimination provision of The Immigration and Nationality Act.

Employer Discrimination Education

Our previous blog post was about the recently announced free webinars concerning workplace discrimination conducted by the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC).  For a list of upcoming webinars, sign up for a Workplace Discrimination Webinar.

Be proactive! Discuss Form I-9 compliance with experienced legal counsel.  Discover how your business can implement I-9 training programs.  Additionally, an independent 3rd party I-9 audit can pinpoint Form I-9 deficiencies and errors. Get your company on the right track to Form I-9 compliance. Contact Allott Immigration Law Firm today.

Be Sociable, Share!