Turn on the news. Open the paper. Click on cnn.com. For months, if not years, immigration has been one of the top stories. Specifically, immigration reform: Will immigration reform happen? When will it happen? And what will it look like if it does happen?
As the 2014 midterm elections draw closer, the immigration reform debate will certainly intensify. And now the White House is joining the conversation, with President Barack Obama threatening to take matters into his own hands. Regardless of their political affiliation or position on immigration reform, employers need to understand what immigration reform means for their day-to-day operations. 
For certain employers—specifically, companies that regularly sponsor foreign nationals for work authorization and those in certain industries, such as food service—immigration reform may alter the immigration process for current employees and increase the number of candidates who are eligible to work. But for most employers, immigration reform will not have much of an impact, and it will not change their underlying employment obligations.
Immigration enforcement aimed at employers remains high. In fiscal year 2012, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made 520 criminal arrests tied to worksite enforcement, including the detention of 240 owners, managers, supervisors, and HR employees, and served more than 3,000 notices of inspection. Immigration reform will not slow down or end employer inspections. In fact, it may increase the penalties for employers that fail to meet their immigration-related obligations.
Immigration reform also will not alter the Form I-9 process—i.e., the requirement that all employers verify the identity and work authorization of every new employee and reverify the work authorization of certain employees. Because of increased enforcement and the likelihood of higher penalties, employers should focus on their I-9 compliance program by reviewing and improving it or, if they don’t have one, by implementing a program as soon as possible. Form I-9 training and internal auditing are a must. Immigration compliance programs in place today will serve employers well after any immigration reform is enacted.
Any immigration reform ultimately passed (regardless of the political party sponsoring it) will likely include an E-Verify component that requires all employers to participate in the federal government’s online employment eligibility verification program. It is important to understand that E-Verify is only an add-on component to an employer’s own employment eligibility verification process. Regardless of whether E-Verify is mandated, employers will still be required to complete the Form I-9 process. As a result, employers are well served to focus on reviewing and revising, or implementing, internal immigration-related compliance programs before additional work is added to their plates.
Christine D. Mehfoud is an attorney with Spotts Fain in the firm’s Richmond, Virginia, office. Christine will be speaking on immigration issues at the annual Advanced Employment Issues Symposium in Las Vegas on Thursday, November 6. She will address the most complex immigration-related compliance challenges facing employers today and detail the legal steps for avoiding violations when hiring the employees you need. She may be contacted at cmehfoud@spottsfain.com.