Wage and Hour Division Hires More Investigators
Posted Apr 10, 2009
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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) recently came under criticism in a report entitled, Wage and House Division's Complaint Intake and Investigative Processes Leave Low Wage Workers Vulnerable to Wage Theft (PDF 318KB). Issued by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), this report found that the WHD's current system discouraged wage complaints and did not properly pursue those that were filed. In response to the GAO report, the WHD plans to hire more investigators and increase oversight. While the report in question did not directly include issues related to H1B wage violations, this expansion of staff is relevant. It is the WHD that is responsible for investigating employer compliance with regard to the H1B labor condition application (LCA) requirements, including wage payments for H1B workers.
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DOL Response to GAO Report : Hire More Investigators
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Following the issuance of the GAO report finding deficiencies in the WHD's investigations of general wage violation claims, DOL Secretary Hilda Solis stated that she takes GAO's report seriously, and announced that WHD is hiring 250 more investigators. The DOL expects that WHD can strengthen its commitment to enforcing labor laws designed to protect U.S. workers by bringing in more investigators.
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Employer Compliance Likely to Increase with More Investigators
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While the planned expansion of the WHD arose out of wage payment issues, separate from immigration and LCA concerns, the WHD's authority includes LCA violations. Thus, this should be seen as another indication of the current focus on employer-based enforcement. The importance of paying all workers, U.S. and foreign, the wages required by law cannot be over emphasized. Common violations were brought to the attention of MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers in our November 21, 2008 article, Common Employment Violations. Matters of increased LCA enforcement were covered in our October 24, 2008 article, H1B Benefit Fraud & Compliance Assessment Signals Change.
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Conclusion
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The message is clear: employers need to be aware of laws pertaining to wages, both generally and in connection with any H1B workers, and must establish practices that comply with those laws. The H1B concerns extend beyond wages, though these are obviously an important part of H1B compliance. Employers must get proper advice from employment as well as immigration attorneys, in order to structure and operate their businesses in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.