Page 18 - may-june 2021_Neat

HUMAN RESOURCE ASSOCIATES

HR Consultants to Management

HR NOTEBOOK

For Your Most Important Resource

SURVIVING THE I-9 AUDIT

Immigration has been a major issue for decades  Companies with many hourly paid
and it will be an even bigger one over the employees.
coming year. The previous Spring push  In response to complaints from
produced a 400% increase in audits. Penalties of employees, ex-employees, clients and
$50, 000 plus were common. The next big push the public.
is scheduled to begin after the upcoming Covid–
19 audits. II. What are they looking for?
They want to examine your process and look for
Most companies we’ve talked to had no idea errors.
whether their I-9 program would pass an audit  Unsecured I-9s (not filed separately and
or not. After all, it is a government project with secured)
lots of paperwork. The smart move is to do your  Missing I-9s
audit before they do. Here’s a guide to help you  Missing documents
through this.  Unacceptable documents
 Expired documents
I. What triggers an I-9 Audit? How are  Documents with errors
companies selected?
II. What are they looking for?  Your requirement for, and adherence to
E-verify (Are you required to E-verify
III. Correcting mistakes and/or did you follow the procedures?)
IV. The No-Match-Letter
V. A basic guide for the I-9 process III Correcting Mistakes

I. What triggers an I-9 Audit? How are  Examine all I-9 forms:
companies selected? o Look for any employee without
Most NOIs (Notice of Inspection) are at an I-9.
random, but there are targets. o Expired documents
o Any errors or missing
 Larger, high profile companies information.
(publicity sends a message)
 You may correct a mistake or prepare a
new form as you choose. But, unless it’s

18 Alabama Propane Gas Association | May / June 2021