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Judge Halts New Social Security ‘No Match’ Rules |
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A federal judge yesterday issued a preliminary injunction stopping the government from enforcing a new rule that would have caused U.S. citizens and legal residents to lose their jobs because of errors in the Social Security Administration (SSA) database.
The order prevents any implementation—until the court makes a final ruling—of a Department of Homeland Security rule punishing employers if they do not take action after receiving Social Security “no match” letters.
The “no match” letters are notices that SSA sends once per year to employers who report a certain number of discrepancies between their employment records and SSA’s database. According to the government’s own records, 70 percent of the discrepancies belong to native-born U.S. citizens.
“No match” letters have long been used by employers to defeat worker organizing. Time after time, employers have tried to use the letters as a pretext to fire workers when they try to organize, file a wage claim or otherwise exercise their workers’ rights. The new rule would have given employers an even stronger pretext.
The judge found that the new rule “would result in irreparable harm to innocent workers and employers.” He noted that the letters would affect more than 8 million workers, and “result in the termination of employment to lawfully employed workers.” He also recognized that SSA itself has conceded that it will not be able to correct all mismatches—even if the mismatch is the result of SSA error—within the period provided in the rule. As a result, the judge found that AFL-CIO members who are authorized to work would be fired as a result of the letter.
AFL-CIO President John Sweeney says:
This is a significant step towards overturning this unlawful rule, which would give employers an even stronger way to keep workers from freely forming unions. More than 70 percent of SSA discrepancies refer to U.S. citizens, and…the mailing of the new ‘no match’ letters would result in irreparable harm to innocent workers and employers.
In an editorial today The New York Times strongly criticized the Bush administration for its immigration policies and the “foolish crackdowns” such as the “no-match” rule:
It is not the case — though infuriated hard-liners will insist otherwise — that millions of undocumented workers are now being let off the hook by a soft-headed judge. If the no-match crackdown had proceeded, many workers without papers would still have found jobs in the underground economy, perhaps worse ones or with better-forged papers. Identity theft would have risen.
The federal government has embarked on a disastrously one-sided immigration strategy—pulling out one harsh enforcement tool after another without having repaired the broken system. We have already seen the results of runaway enforcement on the agricultural industry—a shortage of workers leading to rotting crops and farmers relocating south of the border. The trouble with crackdowns, like the foolish one involving “no-match” letters, is that they cause oceans of pain and havoc—not just for undocumented immigrants, but also for legal residents and the economy—without actually solving anything.
The injunction comes as a result of a lawsuit filed in August by the AFL-CIO, Central Labor Council of Alameda County, the San Francisco Central Labor Council, and the San Francisco Building Trades Council. The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Immigration Law Center are co-counseling the case, along with the AFL-CIO.
Click here to read a copy of the judge’s order.
10 Comments
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Unions should not support illegal workers ,you know and I know , no worker has or ever been fire for a mistaken on SS#’s ! You think it’s ok to lie to your employer ?
Why are you misleading the American public ?
Larry
Sorry Larry but you are wrong! In the last three years nearly 30 employees of University of Washington Housing and Food services have been seperated due to no match or other glitches. These have included permanent state workers, temporary stae workers and student workers. Some people put in seven months as state workers before SSA said no go. They were rehired but had restaret probation and forfiet the previous service unless they had enough money to buy back the time. Knowing that we are an AFSCME agency shop I shuddr to think what it’s like for unorgainzed people. These people DID NOT LIE, all but 3 were totaly legal, the other three were caught in a law change that said they could no longer work anywhere but the community college they were enrolled in-used to be they could work at public college or university in the area as a student (first year only, second year they could work private sector while going to school.
A lot of workers who have no papers have been here for over a decade. They’re integrated into the economy. Increasing numbers are becoming unionized. They’re impacted by these no-match letters.
It’s a tough situation for the unions. On the one hand, it’s good to restrict the labor market to create minor labor shortages. On the other, the unions are powerless to do this. The country’s always had many immigrants, and many undocumented or illegal immigrants. They’re making the best of the situation. After all, there were many “illegals” back in the turn of the century, when the labor movement started… and they managed include some of these potential scabs.
As for being fired for no-match — it has happened. Look up Hoffman Plastics. An undoc guy started to try and organize at the factory, and they laid him off. Then when he came back, they used the no-match to fire him, and refused to pay his back pay. The court upheld this.
If you think about it - the company knew he was a no-match, and still hired him. Then when he made trouble, they used his status to fire him. The new rules for enforcing no-match will cause some of these businesses to ask workers to become independent contractors, and pay them in cash.
Workers are not illegal. They are just trying to make a better life for their families .
It is the corrupt Employers and Governments that allow Workers to be exploited, abused and deprived of the dignity they deserve.
All Workers must recognize that their Struggle is our Struggle.
The SSA has been sending no match letters for years and now the Feds are adding an enforcement provision. 90 days is plenty of time for an employee to go to the SSA office an straighten out any problems and also I might add in their best interest as the money going in is not being credited to their account. This is nothing but politics and FUD. Send the letters!!!
Sirs as a forty year member of the UA,and 3rd.generation union member.I feel we have no obligation to any person who has broken our laws to be here and this no match letter is one way to find this out,it should not be blocked.The few legal citizens affected by this will have legal recourse if they are truly legal citizens.I feel the AFL-CIO’s stance on illegal immigrants is sorely misplaced,they should be doing more for legal citizen union members and stop wasting funds on things the rank file are against.Yours Dr.
I’ve been a union member for 40 yrs. now and I’ve spent my time on picket lines supporting my fellow members and what I believed in. I do not understand why some people are saying that the afl-cio are merging with the ACLU to fight illegal immigration. My constitution plainly states that if any article or by-law is in fact contrary to law or the Constitution, that article or by-law is voided. When illegal immigrant come into my house and force my wages down, I get angry and if this is what the afl-cio wants to promote, maybe the carpenters are right, we do need new leadership. I think the democrats are going to lose to the republican in the next presidential election just because of the democrats stand on illegal immigration. Just maybe the afl-cio and the democratic party should start to get their heads on straight and start to worry about thier members and quit trying to help lawbreakers.
as a 55 year member of the afl this the first time I strongly diagree with your stance.Can you not see the diferance between legal & ilegal,Iam a son of legal immigrants & proud of it.It seems that some unions want new members even if they are not in this country legaly.These people are abused by big business & your position helps this exploytation.
I agree with Larry wholeheartily. The labor movement should not shoot it’s self in the foot by advocating for cheap labor that will more than likely be employed nonunion employers that will further drive down wages. If the AFL-CIO feels that strongly about the issue of foreign workers they should try to help them in their own country.
I’ve been a union activist in Seattle for 15 years. The crackdown that is taking place on all of our rights, as a result of the war against undocumented workers, is disturbing. No one of us can sustain good wages, or have our civil liberties as long as another sector of the population, 11 million workers! is driven underground and treated as second-class. Come on folks let’s study history and current events. Employers and the U.S. government are using workplace raids to stop union organizing. Employers are using “illegal” status to deprive workers of their right to organize and unionize. Look at what happened at Swift Meatpacking, and the example cited by dportjoe. The reason this crackdown is taking place is because the U.S. Chamber of Commerce really wants “guest worker legislation” where they can legally bring in super-exploited cheaper labor. It is in the interests of all workers to demand that all workers have full rights, no matter their “paperwork.”
The Washington State Labor Council just passed a resolution in defense of immigrant rights at its August 2007 Convention. The vote was overwhelmingly in support because the delegates there understand that united we stand, divided we fall. Check it out on the WSLC website. I applaud the delegates and the Labor Councils who took the initiative on this question. We need more of this!