Job offer on hold - Employer won't accept passport temp permanent resident stamp

[Clair.S 5]

Hi,

I've paid my fee and I'm currently waiting for my Permanent Resident Card to be sent. I have my temporary permanent resident stamp in my passport but my potential employer who I have a job offer from are saying that I won't be able to be employed until I get the actual Permanent Resident Card as they require a photocopy of the front and back of it. This seems very unfair, is there anything I can do about this?

Thanks

[ryna 132]

He doesn't know what he is talking about. An employer is obligated to accept any valid proof of legal residence and can not decide which are acceptable to him and which are not.

Look here:

http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/i-9.pdf

List A, Number 3. The I-551 stamp in your foreign passport satisfies both requirements - proof of ID and proof of eligibility.

Also, look on Page 3, Section 2, the 3rd paragraph down and point out where it says that an employer cannot specify which documents employees may present.

Edited September 26, 2014 by ryna

[Clair.S 5]

Thanks !

I rang the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, they were very helpful and said pretty much what you said, and that they can't move my start date to get the hard copy when I already have a valid visa.

[ryna 132]

It's probably a case of the employer not understanding the law very well more than anything else. If you can show them proof, directly from the I-9 itself, hopefully they will learn something new!

Best of luck!

[Clair.S 5]

So even though I sent them all the information my enrollment is still being postponed until they get the full copy of my permanent resident card. As according to them, they have done this many times before without any issues.

[NathanK 2]

Hi,

I've paid my fee and I'm currently waiting for my Permanent Resident Card to be sent. I have my temporary permanent resident stamp in my passport but my potential employer who I have a job offer from are saying that I won't be able to be employed until I get the actual Permanent Resident Card as they require a photocopy of the front and back of it. This seems very unfair, is there anything I can do about this?

Thanks

It's illegal for the employer to deny you employment.

Once you have the approved and stamped I-551 in your passport you are eligible for employment.

If this employer does participate in eVerify you can have them verify your employment eligibility.

You can also raise the issue of legality and threaten to sue them... this should get them moving pretty fast!

The Human Resource person at your future employer just doesn't know the law.

Good luck

[Caryh 5,206]

It's illegal for the employer to deny you employment.

Once you have the approved and stamped I-551 in your passport you are eligible for employment.

If this employer does participate in eVerify you can have them verify your employment eligibility.

You can also raise the issue of legality and threaten to sue them... this should get them moving pretty fast!

The Human Resource person at your future employer just doesn't know the law.

Good luck

Most people do not wish to sue their potential employer. Which is why places like this get away with it.

[Clair.S 5]

After further communication....They are now trying to claim that this will not affect my start date. My enrollment is just 'postponed' (which obviously has the knock on affect of postponing any start date). They are still stating that its their policy to have the front and back of the permanent resident card, so I will just have to wait. They also stated that they have worked on many projects and this has never been an issue.

[Caryh 5,206]

After further communication....They are now trying to claim that this will not affect my start date. My enrollment is just 'postponed' (which obviously has the knock on affect of postponing any start date). They are still stating that its their policy to have the front and back of the permanent resident card, so I will just have to wait. They also stated that they have worked on many projects and this has never been an issue.

LOL because they're always right, and if you want a job you will not complain.

Technically their policy can not overrule Federal law, but it happens every day because the HR departments never bother to read the actual instructions on the form they're required to fill out for every employee.

Did you point out the part of the form that states it is illegal for them to tell an employee what form of identification they will accept?

[Clair.S 5]

LOL because they're always right, and if you want a job you will not complain.

Technically their policy can not overrule Federal law, but it happens every day because the HR departments never bother to read the actual instructions on the form they're required to fill out for every employee.

Did you point out the part of the form that states it is illegal for them to tell an employee what form of identification they will accept?

This has all been done through email, so I forwarded our email correspondence to the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices and they are kindly dealing with it :-) *Edit - Including the bit where they told me which I.D document I had to submit for the I-9 ;-)

Edited September 26, 2014 by Clair.S

[ryna 132]

Most people do not wish to sue their potential employer. Which is why places like this get away with it.

Exactly! You would win the battle by suing them but you would lose the war. And, even if they were forced to let you continue working there, it would only be until enough time had passed that they felt comfortable in finding a new reason to let you go. And, in at-will employment states (almost all of them), that reason can be just about any petty thing that they can think of.

On the other hand, knowing that this employer is willing to break the law by demanding documents that you are not required to supply to them in the face of clear, unambiguous, written documentation on the very same Federal form whose requirements they are claiming to uphold, I'd keep my options open and continue looking for a workplace that plays by the rules.

[Caryh 5,206]

Exactly! You would win the battle by suing them but you would lose the war. And, even if they were forced to let you continue working there, it would only be until enough time had passed that they felt comfortable in finding a new reason to let you go. And, in at-will employment states (almost all of them), that reason can be just about any petty thing that they can think of.

On the other hand, knowing that this employer is willing to break the law by demanding documents that you are not required to supply to them in the face of clear, unambiguous, written documentation on the very same Federal form whose requirements they are claiming to uphold, I'd keep my options open and continue looking for a workplace that plays by the rules.

exactly. My wife's current place of employment did the same thing, telling her they needed to see her green card and copy the front and back. I find it rather humorous though, because its a India owned and headquartered company and the manager at this USA branch is also a green card holder.

[Hotter Otter 1,211]

Ah the joys of dealing with an unhelpful HR department. I hope they let you start before the green card arrives, can't believe they won't just accept the stamped passport!

[Jawaree 717]

Potential employees are not immigration officers

neither are they very knowlegable on the process,

most fear factor is having to pay thousands in fines

& get immigration audits on a regular basis, so some

insist on seeing the valid GC & is not comfortable

with the stamp no matter what others say. My friend

works at a large corporation and now have the new GC with

expiration date (unlike he had B4)with no expiration,

so about a mth B4 it expired he got an internal email

from HR to go online & renew his card to new one so it

can be on file, in case an audit, well he's applied for

USC so in the future he should be OK. No one can make

these ppl change their rules, they'll get attys claiming

they want to cover their a$$es, & a lawsuit to be hired

is nota great idea

Edited September 26, 2014 by Jawaree

[nadia&sameer 12]

From many years of HR experience I would suggest taking the time to look for a job with another company while they are 'postponing' your start date. Usually when a company is willing to break the law and not follow what they are Federally regulated to do, there is a good chance you may have many more issues with them on other things down the road. This isn't about them not understanding immigration law, it's about them intentionally disregarding the requirements of a very simple I-9 form. Just my 2 cents.