felixthecat
June 26th, 2008, 12:45 PM
Labor Dept To Probe Immigration Law Firm
(helped companies disqualify US citizen applicants)
By Suzanne Gamboa, Associated Press Writer
Manufacturing.Net - June 25, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's largest immigration law firm is under federal scrutiny over whether it helped major U.S. corporations disqualify American job applicants and give thousands of high-paying positions to immigrants.
The unprecedented Labor Department inquiry centers on Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy -- a New York firm at the forefront of a political effort to ease hiring of skilled foreign workers.
The Labor Department is auditing all pending applications for legal immigrant workers the firm has filed on behalf of its corporate clients.
Fragomen's prestigious client roster includes General Electric Co., IBM Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Intel Corp. and Bank of America Corp., according to company publications and trade journals. The firm also represents The Associated Press on immigration issues.
...
The audit focuses on what is known as the permanent foreign labor certification, or PERM, process. Companies normally use it to permanently hire legal immigrants who have been working for them on temporary visas. It essentially allows companies to sponsor workers for green cards, the first step to U.S. citizenship.
Before applying, companies must recruit and try to find a qualified U.S. worker for the same job. If they do, they can't hire the foreigner.
...
The firm's managing director has also said Fragomen represents about half of the Fortune 100 companies. Last year, Fortune 100 companies submitted more than 5,300 applications. The jobs listed in the applications pay an average of $80,000. And the largest group of applicants were from India.
The Labor Department audit is lending firepower to workers, unions and other groups, that for years have said U.S. workers are being replaced with cheaper immigrant labor.
...
"The reason an employer pays its lawyer $3,000 to $5,000 is because they need help in not finding qualified American workers," said Kim Berry, president of the Programmers Guild, an advocacy group that believes immigrant hiring rules are too lax.
...
The Labor Department said Fragomen may have broken the rules because some immigrant recruiting forms the law firm provides to the corporate clients say: "After an interview, should any of the applicants appear to be qualified for the position, please contact a Fragomen attorney immediately to further discuss the candidate's background as it relates to the requirements stated for said position."
...
http://www.manufacturing.net/News-Labor-Dept-To-Probe-Immigration-Law-Firm.aspx?menuid=36
Illegal or those on the road to legal citzenship will owrk for less than legal citizens.
(helped companies disqualify US citizen applicants)
By Suzanne Gamboa, Associated Press Writer
Manufacturing.Net - June 25, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's largest immigration law firm is under federal scrutiny over whether it helped major U.S. corporations disqualify American job applicants and give thousands of high-paying positions to immigrants.
The unprecedented Labor Department inquiry centers on Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy -- a New York firm at the forefront of a political effort to ease hiring of skilled foreign workers.
The Labor Department is auditing all pending applications for legal immigrant workers the firm has filed on behalf of its corporate clients.
Fragomen's prestigious client roster includes General Electric Co., IBM Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Intel Corp. and Bank of America Corp., according to company publications and trade journals. The firm also represents The Associated Press on immigration issues.
...
The audit focuses on what is known as the permanent foreign labor certification, or PERM, process. Companies normally use it to permanently hire legal immigrants who have been working for them on temporary visas. It essentially allows companies to sponsor workers for green cards, the first step to U.S. citizenship.
Before applying, companies must recruit and try to find a qualified U.S. worker for the same job. If they do, they can't hire the foreigner.
...
The firm's managing director has also said Fragomen represents about half of the Fortune 100 companies. Last year, Fortune 100 companies submitted more than 5,300 applications. The jobs listed in the applications pay an average of $80,000. And the largest group of applicants were from India.
The Labor Department audit is lending firepower to workers, unions and other groups, that for years have said U.S. workers are being replaced with cheaper immigrant labor.
...
"The reason an employer pays its lawyer $3,000 to $5,000 is because they need help in not finding qualified American workers," said Kim Berry, president of the Programmers Guild, an advocacy group that believes immigrant hiring rules are too lax.
...
The Labor Department said Fragomen may have broken the rules because some immigrant recruiting forms the law firm provides to the corporate clients say: "After an interview, should any of the applicants appear to be qualified for the position, please contact a Fragomen attorney immediately to further discuss the candidate's background as it relates to the requirements stated for said position."
...
http://www.manufacturing.net/News-Labor-Dept-To-Probe-Immigration-Law-Firm.aspx?menuid=36
Illegal or those on the road to legal citzenship will owrk for less than legal citizens.