The Justice Department announced today that it has reached an agreement with a warehousing, distribution, light assembly and packaging company resolving allegations that the company violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The department’s investigation was initiated based on a referral from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The department’s investigation found that the company, beginning in October 2012, required non-citizens to present specific U.S. Department of Homeland Security-issued documents to establish their identity and work authorization while not making similar requests of U.S. citizens. The INA’s anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from discriminating against noncitizens in the employment eligibility verification process by demanding more or different documents than U.S. citizens are required to present.
Under the settlement agreement, the company agreed to provide training to its human resources personnel on the INA’s anti-discrimination provision, pay $43,092 in civil penalties to the United States, create a $30,000 back pay fund to compensate individuals who suffered economic injuries as a result of the company documentary practices, and be subject to monitoring by the department for a period of two years.
