Napolitano's DHS to Shift Focus to Prosecuting Employers
At yesterday's confirmation hearing Janet Napolitano signaled what some in the media are calling a "clear break" with the outgoing Bush administration's worksite enforcement protocol and priorities. I'm not sure I would term it a clear break, but her comments do portend a shift in emphasis. This much seems clear: the stepped-up level of worksite enforcement employers around the U.S. have been experiencing over the last 2-3 years will continue. In that way Napolitano isn't at all changing the agency's direction. However, Napolitano stated clearly that DHS' emphasis under her watch would shift away from the prosecution of illegal workers and will double-down, instead, on the prosecution of the employers who hire the illegal workers. So that, apparently, is where the new administration's policy change will most manifest itself.
In short, employers beware. My best advice to employers is to get in touch with your attorney and arrange to get yourself a serious worksite immigration and hiring practices compliance program. Spending a little bit of your resources right now on compliance training will save you many nights of sleep and, in some cases, may even prevent the prosecution of you and your staff.
