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Oregon employers required to notify employees of Form I-9 inspections

Maggio Kattar

The State of Oregon has passed SB 370 which, effective January 1, 2020,will require that employers notify their employees of any notice of inspection by a federal agency of the records, forms and other documentation associated with the verification of identify and eligibility to work in the U.S.

Timing for employee notification: 3 days of receipt of notice of inspection

Employers must provide such notice within 3 days of receipt of the notice (for example, if the notice is received on a Monday, the notice must be provided no later than COB Thursday).

Employers must provide notice through:

  1. Posting a notice in a conspicuous and accessible location, in English and in the language the employer typically uses to communicate with the employees; and
  2. Making reasonable attempts to individually distribute notifications to employees in the employee’s preferred language

Notice must consist of:

  1. A copy of the federal agency’s notice of inspection received by the employer; and
  2. The date of the inspection; and
  3. To the extent the employer knows, the scope of the federal agency’s inspection; and
  4. The employer’s obligations with respect to providing information within the scope of the federal agency’s notice of inspection; and
  5. A telephone number, prescribed by the Bureau of Labor and Industries, for a hotline operated by an organization that provides information and advocacy related to immigrant and refugee workers’ rights

The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries will provide a template for employers to use to satisfy the notice requirements above, and this template will be provided in the 5 most popular languages spoken in the state besides English, which, according the United States Census Bureau, includes Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, German and Russian.

For employers outside of Oregon:

The state of California enacted AB450, the Immigrant Worker Protection Act on January 1, 2018 which requires similar notice to employees in the event of an inspection of Form I-9 records as well as the obligation to notify employees of the result of such inspection.  The existence of this notice requirement in California , and now Oregon, does not necessarily mean that other states will follow suit.  However, we often advise our clients to notify employees of a government review of Form I-9 records to get ahead of the rumor mill and set expectations for employees if they are asked to correct their I-9, participate in interviews or perform any other action in support of compliance with the federal inspection.

Important Notes:

The definition of “employee” excludes independent contractors, however, for many reasons, including compliance with this notice requirement, it is important for employers to ensure proper classification of their independent contractors.