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The Retail Employer

The Retail EmployerNovember 2007

New I-9 Form Issued by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

by David Nagle

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a new I-9 form.  Use is encouraged now, and will become mandatory in the very near future, as soon as the form is published in the Federal Register. The revised form and the Handbook for Employers are available at the agency's website, www.uscis.gov.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) issued a revised Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, and M-274, Handbook for Employers, Instructions for Completing the Form I-9 on November 7, 2007. Under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), U.S. employers are required to document on Form I-9 that all citizen and non-citizen employees hired after November 6, 1986, are eligible to work in the U.S. and that their identities match the information on their employment authorization documents.  The revision seeks to achieve full compliance with the document reduction requirements of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), which reduced the number of documents employers may accept from newly hired employees during the employment eligibility verification process. In 1997, the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) published an interim final rule eliminating some of the documents IIRIRA slated for removal. However, Form I-9 was not updated to reflect the revised List of Acceptable Documents at that time.

The most significant change to the revised Form I-9 is the elimination of five documents from List A of the List of Acceptable Documents. These are as follows:

  • Certificate of U.S. Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-570)
  • Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550 or N-570)
  • Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-151)
  • Unexpired Reentry Permit (Form I-327)
  • Unexpired Refugee Travel Document (Form I-571).

One document was added to List A of the List of Acceptable Documents:

  • Unexpired Employment Authorization Document (I-766)

Points to note:

  • While the revised Form I-9 will become effective once the notice is published in the Federal Register, employers are encouraged to start using it immediately. After the effective date, employers may incur fines and penalties for failing to use the new Form I-9.
  • All previous versions of Form I-9, in English or Spanish, are no longer valid.
  • The employee is not obliged to provide the Social Security Number in Section 1 of Form I-9, unless the employer participates in E-Verify.
  • When re-verifying employees, employers should ensure they use the new Form I-9 with its updated list of acceptable documents.
  • Employers only need to complete the new version of Form I-9 for new employees. Employers do not need to complete new forms for existing employees for whom an I-9 has been completed.
  • The Form I-9 is available in English and Spanish. However, only employers in Puerto Rico may have employees complete the Spanish version for their records. Employers in the 50 states and other U.S territories may use the Spanish version as a translation guide for Spanish-speaking employees, but must complete the English version and keep it in the employer's records. Employees may also use or ask for a translator/preparer to assist them in completing the form.

New I-9 Form Announcement

New I-9 Form

Article by David E. Nagle in November 2006 Retail Employer—Got Your I-9s In Order?

David E. Nagle has advised employers with respect to legal issues in the workplace for over 25 years. He is a partner in the Richmond office of Jackson Lewis, a law firm devoted exclusively to the representation of employers in labor, employment, employee benefits and immigration law matters. Jackson Lewis has 400 attorneys in 30 offices across the nation. David may be contacted at (804) 648-4077, or at nagled@jacksonlewis.com.

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'Tis the Season for Managing Seasonal Workers Five Tips for a Jolly Holiday Workforce

Recent reports say retailers will add up to 600,000 employees during November and December to meet the demands of the holiday season. Though most retailers gear up staff by 5% during the holidays, some add up to 50% more workers. But, retail isn’t the only industry increasing staff. Customer service, hospitality, shipping, clerical, manufacturing and e-commerce will all ramp up staffing as the holidays approach.

Whether you’re doubling your workforce in size or adding on a few key hires, it’s important to properly manage seasonal workers to get the best value for your company. Here are five tips to make sure you get the most out of your seasonal staff.

  1. Take time to plan. Planning is the first key step to hiring a seasonal workforce. Think about when your peak times will be so you can hire with enough time to train temporary workers. Also, consider when your permanent staff is planning to take holiday or vacation time so you can have temporary workers in place to keep your staff roster full.
  2. Hire quality people. When hiring seasonal workers, it’s important to remember that even though they may be temporary, you should still hold them to the quality standards you look for in permanent employees. Seasonal workers who can come into your business, learn the ropes quickly and add value are often great candidates to hire full time later on. You may be able to use quality seasonal workers every high season. Often, the best candidates for permanent hire prove themselves during the sometimes trying times of seasonal work. Start by hiring the best, and you’ll be on your way to forming a great seasonal team.
  3. Train everyone. Nothing’s more frustrating than for a seasonal worker to join your team and not know what’s going on – both for management and the worker. Offer enough training for each new hire to be equipped to do their job well. Don’t forget to train temporary workers on workplace policies, procedures and safety requirements. Make sure all workers know how to use equipment and are aware of important things such as fire routes.
  4. Give opportunities to key staff. When bringing on seasonal workers, tap into the resources you have in your existing staff by making them a key part of your training team. Consider a “buddy” training system that assigns each temporary worker with a permanent staff member to shadow or go to for questions if things get hectic. Not only will this help temporary workers get up to speed easily, the increased responsibility will also show your permanent workforce you value their contribution to the team.
  5. Reward performance and attitude. Even though seasonal workers may not become a part of your permanent team, don’t skimp on rewarding excellent performance and good attitudes. Show the holiday spirit by offering performance bonuses and perks to outstanding temporary workers. Consider creating an award such as “Year’s Best Holiday Worker” to recognize outstanding contributions by your temporary staff. This not only motivates your seasonal workers to do their best, but it can also make you a preferred place to apply for seasonal work during the holidays and bring you the top quality candidates time and time again.
Remember, even though your seasonal workers may not be permanent members of your team, their contributions in getting your business though the holiday season are critical to your success. Use these tips to manage seasonal staff, and your holidays will be off to a bright, shining start.

This article is reprinted with permission of www.ExpressPersonnel.com. Contact Mr. Lars Nordin at Lars.Nordin@ExpressPersonnel.com if you would like to be added to their distribution list. Express Personnel now offers RMA members a Retail Staffing Program. More information is available online through www.retailmerchants.com.

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How Will You Get Out of Business?

A great deal of time and energy is devoted to setting up a business but planning to exit a business seems to be avoided. In fact, your exit planning is something that needs to be done now and revaluated on an annual basis since factors change.

You may already be thinking in this direction already for a number of reasons.

  • Perhaps you are thinking about retiring or you are considering a recently received purchase offer.
  • Perhaps you want to stay with the business as long as you are capable and want the business to continue beyond your life time without losing hard earned assets through estate taxes.
  • On the other hand, perhaps your business isn’t doing as well as you hoped, or you’re getting tired of all the time and energy it requires.

There are a myriad of reasons to extricate yourself from your business.

In most cases, the order of preference is:

  • Pass the business on to your children or other family members
  • Sell the business as a growing company
  • Liquidate the business and sell the assets

Don’t wait until these events are on top of you – start thinking now, even if it might be a long time before you want to get out. You need time to consult with professionals to put plans into action. These plans should provide you the opportunity to optimize your financial and personal satisfaction as you exit.

Take action now.

This article is reprinted with permission of Mike Dunleavey, Executive Associate —Business Support Center—Retail Merchants Association.

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