As part of managing the labor force, federal law requires all employers to ensure that their workers have the proper authorization to work in the United States. Other laws prohibit the employment of anyone without first verifying authorization, or the recruiting of illegal aliens to come to the United States to work for a company without proper paperwork.
A Lincoln illegal alien employment lawyer may be able to help you if you are facing charges of unlawful workplace activity regarding illegal aliens. Legal representation can include providing counsel and representing you in court against charges of illegal recruitment of non-authorized workers as well as charges of actual employment of such workers. While the process of investigation, filing of charges, and prosecution can take months or years, a determined immigration employment crimes lawyer will stand by you and can fight to defend your rights at every step of the process.
Making Sure Employees in Lincoln are Legal
The United States’ immigration laws state that only certain people are authorized to work in the U.S. These include citizens, non-citizen legal residents, and people in the country on a specific work visa. Anyone not in these categories may not be employed in Lincoln or anywhere else in the county.
Ensuring that a potential employee has the right to work for a company falls on both the worker and the employer. Form I-9 requires all workers to demonstrate their legal status and requires all employers to verify the worker’s documentation. Failing to perform these checks is not a valid defense for employing illegal aliens.
8 CFR §274a.3 states that this is a Federal offense. To secure a conviction, a prosecutor needs to prove that an employer knew that the employee in question was an illegal alien. However, 8 CFR §274a.4 also provides an affirmative defense where an employer can argue in court that they made a good faith effort to comply with all verification requirements. This may apply if an employee presented what appeared to be a passport but was, in fact, a forged document.
Some employers use E-Verify, which can be helpful in identifying suspicious applicants, but using the system is not currently required in Nebraska unless your company is fulfilling government contracts or receiving certain tax incentives.
The penalties for hiring an illegal alien are harsh. 8 CFR §274a.10 says that criminal charges may apply if a person allegedly demonstrates a pattern of violations concerning the proper employment of his or her workers. A person facing these offenses may face a fine of up to $3,000 or a six-month prison term. A Lincoln recruiting and employing illegal aliens lawyer could help protect individuals against these allegations.
Recruitment of Illegal Aliens
Just as it is illegal to hire any person who does not have proper work authorization, it is also illegal to bring such people into the country for work. In fact, it is illegal to merely attempt to bring these individuals into the United States. Recruiting illegal workers qualifies as a violation of the law, and is subject to prosecution.
8 USC §1324(a)(1)(A)(iv) says that it is a crime for any person to encourage or induce an illegal alien to come into the United States with the knowledge that such an entry would be against the law. Once again, the question of knowledge is very important in these cases, and many individuals can argue that they did not know that the employee in question lacked the authorization to work in the United States.
Business owners accused of violating this law can face severe penalties. A single instance of the recruitment of illegal aliens for a commercial purpose carries a maximum prison sentence of ten years. In addition, the court may fine this business owner up to $500,000. A Lincoln-based lawyer experienced with laws about recruiting and employing illegal aliens could help protect business owners from these harsh penalties.
Reach Out to a Lincoln Recruiting and Employing Illegal Aliens Attorney
Every business owner has a requirement to ensure that their employees are authorized to work in the United States. Failing to do this could result in the hiring of an illegal alien that could bring severe financial and criminal penalties.
Similarly, it is illegal to entice, convince, or otherwise recruit any illegal alien to come into the country. If this is done for a commercial purpose, the penalties can result in multiple years in prison and aggressive fines.
A Lincoln recruiting and employing illegal aliens lawyer could help defend you against these charges. To start fighting back call Berry Law for a confidential consultation.
