WR Immigration Podcast: Chatting with Charlie December 2022 Webinar

Immigration Compliance: Beware of Being TOO Diligent

In a new settlement, the Department of Justice (DOJ) imposed a civil penalty of $84,832, along with training and monitoring requirements, on Ascension Health Alliance, a Missouri-based health care organization with more than 2,600 sites, including 146 hospitals and more than 40 senior living facilities in 19 states and the District of Columbia. Ascension was found to have violated the law by discriminating against work-authorized non-U.S. citizens because of their citizenship status. Ascension told its noncitizen employees to prove their continued authorization with new documentation even when not required. Close to the expiration date of non-U.S. citizen employees’ documents, the company sent the workers automated emails and further required non-U.S. citizen employees to present new documents to continue working for the company. Ascension did not send such emails to U.S. citizens and did not similarly notify them near the expiration of their documents. This is a good example and warning to employers not to treat their noncitizen employees differently from their U.S. citizen employees, and not to ask for additional documentation beyond the minimum required by law. “This is a good example and warning to employers not to treat their noncitizen employees differently from their U.S. citizen employees, and not […]