Judge Blocks ‘No-Match Letter’

A U.S. District Judge in San Francisco issued a preliminary injunction on October 10 that blocks the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from implementing a new regulation regarding discrepancies between workers’ names and Social Security numbers.

Under the rule, employers would have been given 90 days to work with an employee receiving a “No-Match Letter” and the government in order to rectify the problem and, in absence of a resolution, would have been forced to terminate employment or face serious fines.

The court ruling blocks DHS enforcement of the new regulation until another federal court holds a full hearing on the merits of the plaintiffs’ claims, which will probably be in 2008.

The plaintiffs included both business and organized labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO, American Civil Liberties Union, and U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Despite the injunction, employers should respond to “No-Match” Letters from the government using current procedures.

Visit PIA/GATF’s online compliance guidance at GAIN.net.