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EMPLOYMENT LAW — 4/19/07

USCIS launches Photo Screening Tool Pilot Program

As an enhancement to its employment eligibility verification (EEV) program, Basic Pilot, the US Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Bureau of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has launched a new pilot for employers to compare Lawful Permanent Residence cards (i.e., green cards) and other employment authorization documents containing photographs presented by new employees during the hiring process to the official photographs stored in DHS databases. "This enhancement to the Basic Pilot Program adds another level of security for employers during the hiring process and sets the foundation for continued technological improvements," stated Christopher Bentley, a spokesperson for USCIS, in an interview with CCH.

Background. Established in 1998 and renewed through 2008, Basic Pilot is an Internet-based system operated by USCIS in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA). Basic Pilot, an employment eligibility verification (EEV) program, allows employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility status of newly hired employees by providing an automated link to federal databases to help employers determine employment eligibility of new hires and the validity of their Social Security numbers. Employer's can register online for the program at https://www.vis-dhs.com/EmployerRegistration, which provides instructions for completing the registration process. At the end of the registration process, employers are required to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which provides the terms of agreement between the employer, the SSA and DHS.

As a participant in the Basic Pilot, employers are required to verify all newly hired employees, both US citizens and non-citizens. Employers may not verify selectively, and must verify all new hires while participating in the program. The program may not be used to prescreen applicants for employment, go back and check employees hired before the company signed the MOU, or reverify employees who have temporary work authorization. Employers may choose to leave Basic Pilot at any time. An employer who verifies work authorization under Basic Pilot has established a rebuttable presumption that it has not knowingly hired an unauthorized alien. Participation in the program does not provide a "safe harbor" from worksite enforcement, however.

Photo Screening Tool Pilot. Launched on March 19, 2007 and seen as an enhancement to Basic Pilot, the Photo Screening Tool Pilot Program has the participation of 48 companies and is scheduled to last three months. The Photo Screening Tool Pilot was created out of demands from employers for a greater level of technological capacity in Basic Pilot. "Putting a biometric component into Basic Pilot is the next evolutionary step to enhance the program," stated Bentley.

The aims of the Photo Screening Tool Pilot are to ensure that the process is not burdensome for employers and easy to use. The Photo Screening Tool Pilot will also identify and mitigate/solve potential problems that might occur, including discrimination against potential employees and technology issues. Testing the tool in a pilot is a chance to address potential misuses by employers before the tool is mandatory for Basic Pilot participants. Ultimately, the Photo Screening Tool seeks to reduce the amount of queries by employers participating in Basic Pilot that cause secondary verifications. The tool with also increase the integrity of DHS's databases, stated Bentley, and will upgrade Basic Pilot's technological capacity by adding additional data sources in the future to (aside from green cards and other employment authorization documents containing photographs). As a secondary purpose, the Photo Screening Tool might make it easier to detect whether an identity document containing a photo has been altered. However, Bentley confirmed that the tool is "not a full antidote" for identity fraud.

Name change on the horizon. That is not all that's changing at USCIS. Basic Pilot may be undergoing a name change. Though it is not fully resolved, Bentley confirmed that in the next few months Basic Pilot will be rebranded to reflect the fact that it is no longer a pilot; Basic Pilot has been in existence since 1998. The new name will more accurately line up with what Basic Pilot -- an employment eligibility verification program -- does, Bentley said.

For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.

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