The Next Generation of E-Verify: Getting Employer Verification Right

Just prior to the July 2009 House and Senate hearings on E-Verify and other options for a new national work identification system, the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) released a report that examined the strengths and weaknesses of E-Verify and urged Congress and the Department of Homeland Security to take immediate steps to strengthen the electronic employment verification system while also testing alternatives for a next-generation E-Verify. The report, The Next Generation of E-Verify: Getting Employment Verification Right, recommends immediate steps to strengthen the existing E-Verify, and in the context of expected mandatory electronic employment verification and comprehensive immigration reform urges the testing of several new voluntary pilots for a next-generation E-Verify system. The report outlines three alternatives, along with their strengths and weaknesses, for a next-generation E-Verify, recommending that Congress approve pilot testing on a voluntary basis of systems based on secure documents, PIN pre-verification, and biometric scanning. The current E-Verify model places employers at the center of the identity authentication process, which has resulted in difficulties for employers and workers alike. The proposed pilot programs would move from an employer-centric to a more employer-neutral model, streamlining the steps employers are required to take to confirm work authorization for new hires; reducing incentives and potential for identity fraud; and removing the guesswork in authenticating the identities of new hires. This webinar features a presentation by Marc R. Rosenblum, MPI Senior Policy Analyst and report co-author, on MPI’s recommendations and the report’s findings, as well as proposed Congressional approaches to employment verification.