Federal government employees aren’t the only ones shouldering an extra load during the federal government shutdown. Employers are taking on the burden of trying to keep track of Forms I-9 that need to be completed or updated despite no access to their E-Verify accounts because of the shutdown.
According to a post on the E-Verify website, several policies were put in place at the beginning of the shutdown, including:
- Employers may not take any adverse action against an employee while the employee’s case is in interim case status
- Extending the time period during which employees may resolve TNCs (Tentative Nonconfirmations)
- And a suspension of the “three-day rule” for creating E-Verify cases
What are employer’s responsibilities for E-Verify during the shutdown?
- Keep track of I-9s completed for new hires (starting with December 22, 2018) so you can update records once E-Verify is back online. Attach a memo in a master E-Verify file with the number of days the system was unavailable.
- Keep track of the situation and anticipate a backload once the system is up and running. Work with your attorney on how much time employees will have to resolve their TNCs once the system is functional.
- Continue to hire employees as usual. Just be certain you continue good documentation practices.
