The U.S. Departments of Justice and State recently announced that they have formalized a partnership aimed at protecting U.S. workers from discrimination and the misuse of employment visas. The partnership facilitates information sharing in order to accomplish these goals. Specifically, the departments will share information about employers that allegedly may be engaging in unlawful discrimination, committing fraud, or making other misrepresentations in their use of employment-based visas, such as H-1B, H-2A, and H-2B visas. The Department of Justice has already filed a lawsuit against a Colorado company, alleging that the company discriminated against U.S. workers in favor of foreign visa workers.
Because of the continued heightened scrutiny of employment-based visas, it is as important as ever for employers to ensure that they remain in full compliance with immigration law. The government continues to be hyper-vigilant for instances of discrimination or fraud in the employment visa context, so it is essential that employers be mindful of this throughout the recruitment and employment process. Dayzad Law continues to monitor any changes in immigration law, so that our clients will remain informed and can avoid any additional and unnecessary scrutiny from the government.