NEW HAVEN CONN. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
New York, San Francisco and Houston are among the cities that are known to be looking at implementing ID card programs nearly identical to the one launched in New Haven in July. Since then some 3,000 cards have been issued to any local residents who requested one. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
As many as 12,000 of New Haven’s 125,000 residents are illegal aliens, according to estimates cited in local media reports. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
The cards are intended to provide locals who lack state or federal ID a way to open bank accounts or obtain other services requiring proof of identity. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
But Simon Flynn, president and chief executive of the Connecticut Restaurant Association, said the program could create chaos among foodservice employers who don’t realize the cards are not proof of work eligibility under federal regulations. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
New Haven’s cards generally follow federal formats “and have pictures and such information as date of birth and so forth,” Flynn said. “However, they do not establish employment eligibility, which I believe creates a potential for confusion.” —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
Flynn said the mere existence of the cards could puzzle potential employers. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
Businesses “are now going to be looking at something they’ve not seen before,” he explained. “It will have the appearance of something that purports to demonstrate employability whereas that is not the case. Certainly it won’t protect employers against no-match,” he said, referring to the Bush administration’s pending plan to fine employers as much as $10,000 for failing to fire workers who can’t verify discrepancies in their Social Security account information within 90 days of a warning. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
Flynn said his association is planning a series of programs to educate members about the no-match rule, which was blocked from implementation last month by a federal judge in San Francisco at least until an Oct. 1 court hearing there. —As major cities nationwide consider similar plans, a new program here that issues identification cards to residents, including illegal immigrants, may confuse restaurateurs about their duties to verify the eligibility of job applicants, a prominent industry leader says.
