Suspending Employers' Immigration-Related Duties during Labor Disputes: A Statutory Proposal

Abstract

Immigration and labor law can be uncomfortable bedfellows. The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of requires employers on pain of sanctions to check employees' work papers. At the same time, labor and employment laws give workers the right to be free from intimidation and retaliation while engaging in protected activities. The law is unclear about whether immigration duties or labor rights should prevail during labor disputes. This confusion undermines shared national and state policy goals for both workplace protection and immigration control as well as the parties involved on the ground: employers, employees, agencies, and courts. Congress is in the best position to address the document-verification uncertainties and should amend IRCA to provide a strong and clear rule suspending employers' verification duties during labor disputes.