Government Rolls Out Pilot Worker Verification Program

By Karen Axelton

Illegal workers are a key concern in Washington and now the Federal government is considering using a private system for verifying the identity of employees before they are hired, The Washington Post reports.

Currently, employers have the option to check employees’ legal status using a system called E-Verify (this is voluntary). However, many immigrants use stolen Social Security numbers to game the E-Verify system.

The new plan, being tested by the Department of Homeland Security and not approved by Congress yet, would use the same existing verification systems people use when they apply for a mortgage or a bank account. In addition to giving an employer their Social Security number, employees would also need to answer questions about their personal financial background to verify their identity.

In March, the government rolled out a voluntary pilot program that allows individuals in the District of Columbia, Virginia, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho and Mississippi to use a system provided by Equifax to verify their identity. After their identify is verified, users access a federal database to verify that they’re authorized to work in the U.S. The program will be expanded nationwide in the coming months.

Those involved in the program say one reason it’s needed is to help the small percentage of citizens and legal immigrants who run into problems when their employers use the E-Verify system. The new system enables workers to check their records before they apply for jobs, giving them the chance to fix any errors.

Employers and the government will not get any information about which workers do self-checks, and employers cannot require employees to do them.

Of course, using private databases to verify information may also involve errors; Alejandro Mayorkas, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, told the Post he is concerned about that issue.

Mayorkas said the government will evaluate how well the pilot program works before giving employers access. Even if employers are able to access the program, Mayorkas said it would remain voluntary unless Congress acts to make it mandatory.

If you currently use E-Verify in your business, stay tuned for more news on how this program will affect you as it rolls out.

Image by Flickr user Brittanie Shey (Creative Commons)

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 5th, 2011 at 6:00 am and is filed under Workforce. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.


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