Hiring Immigrants

1. 1

   Eleven (11) percent of small businesses have immigrants on the payroll. The number is twice as large among those employing 20 or more people as those employing nine or fewer.
   

2. 2

   The overwhelming majority of small employers think that they have no need for information or advice about the legal requirements for hiring employees generally or immigrants specifically.
   

3. 3

   Though required, just 36 percent of small employers could recall completing an I-9 form in the last three years.
   

4. 4

   A driver’s license is far and away the most common form that prospective employees use to demonstrate they are who they say they are. Ninety-two (92) percent of small employers who recall completing an I-9 form indicate that a driver’s license was the ID most frequently used for identification purposes.
   

5. 5

   The most common document prospective employees use to prove they are eligible to work is a Social Security card. However, just 48 percent of small employers report that it is the most common. The remainder cite various other documents. Twenty-seven (27) percent could not identify any document as being the single most common.
   

6. 6

   Eighty (80) percent of small employers who recall filling out an I-9 form in the last three years made photocopies of the documents presented by the new hire, though they are not required to do so. Copying the documents is relatively easy as 88 percent have a copy machine in their place of business. Of those who do not, 88 percent have access to one within five minutes distance.
   

7. 7

   Nine percent of small employers who recall completing an I-9 form in the last three years think they have been presented false ID to obtain employment.
   

8. 8

   Small employers often start their employees soon after hire, making proposals for waiting periods prior to an employee starting work disruptive to small business. Twenty-seven (27) percent typically start their people within 24 hours of hire. Another 25 percent sometimes do. The result is that half of small employers at least sometimes start new employees within 24 hours of hire.
   

9. 9

   Eleven (11) percent of small businesses currently employ one or more immigrants. Twenty (20) percent hired “day labor” for their business in the last year.
   

10. 10

    Three of four small, employing businesses would not be affected by an increase in H1B visas. Half of the remainder would be helped by an increase in the number of those visas. But the other half would be damaged by it.
    

11. 11

    Four of five small, employing businesses would not be affected by an increase in H2B visas. As with H1B visas, half of the remainder would be helped by an increase in the number of those visas. But the other half would be damaged by it.

Volume 8, Issue 2, 2008
ISSN 1534-8326

William J. Dennis, Jr.
NFIB Research Foundation

• 1Do you recall filling out an I-9 form in the last three years, that is a federal form associated with hiring new employees?
• 2What type of picture ID do new employees most often provide you to show that they are the person they say they are?
• 2aWould you estimate that at least 90 percent of the new employees use a for picture ID?
• 3What type of ID do new employees most often provide you to show that they are eligible to work in the United States?
• 3aWould you estimate that at least 90 percent of the new employees use a (response in Q#3) for picture ID?
• 4Do you make photocopies of those documents and retain them?
• 5How long do you retain the actual I-9 form? Do you retain the I-9 for as long as the person works for you, for a longer period than that, or for a shorter period than that?
• 6In the last three years, have you experienced or strongly suspected anyone of attempting to give you false or counterfeit ID for purposes of getting hired?
• 7A non-match letter is a letter telling you that a Social Security number you submitted with an employee’s name either does not exist or is not associated with that employee. In the last three years, has the Social Security Administration sent you a non-match letter?
• 7a(non-match letter) About how many times has that occurred in the last three years?
• 7bA mismatch can occur due to a clerical error or an employee not having a valid Social Security number. Is a clerical error always, sometimes or never the reason for your Social Security number mismatches?
• 7cDoes it typically take less than a week, one to two weeks, or longer than two weeks to resolve mismatch problems?
• 8When you hire someone, is the most common time frame between the actual hire and when the person starts to work:?
• 8aDo you commonly, sometimes, or never start a new employee the day he or she was hired or the day immediately following?
• 9Do you have a photocopy machine in your place of business?
• 9aIs there a photocopy machine you can use within five minutes of your business?
• 10In the last year, have you hired any “day labor” for the business, that is, a person or persons to do usually manual labor for a day or two knowing the work is just for that brief period.
• 11Does your business employ an immigrant worker or workers of any kind?
• 12Would your business directly benefit a lot, directly benefit a little, be damaged a little, or be damaged a lot by increasing the number of immigrant work visas available for highly skilled people, known as H1B visas. Or, would your business not be affected by a change in the number of H1B visas?
• 13Would your business directly benefit a lot, directly benefit a little, be damaged a little, or be damaged a lot by increasing the number of immigrant work visas available for seasonal workers, known as H2B visas. Or, would your business not be affected by a change in the number of H2B visas?
• 14In the last three years, have you needed an explanation of the law or legal requirements with respect to hiring immigrants or to complete I-9 forms for the people you hire?