Shelbyville Times-Gazette (Tennessee) (01/25/12) John Carney

Businesses that employ 500 or more people are now required to either use E-Verify, the federal government’s electronic employment eligibility verification program, to check the citizenship status of newly hired employees, or else ask for and keep a file copy of verifying documents. Many Tennessee businesses have already been using the E-Verify program for years. “We’ve been utilizing the program for some while now,” says Wendy Bruer of HG Staffing. “It’s very easy. It only takes a few minutes per employee.”

Bruer notes that before E-Verify, some businesses paid to have Social Security checks done. She adds that the nature of the staffing company business means that she processes more inquiries a week than most normal businesses would. “If I can do it,” she says, “then any employer should be able to.” Bruer says she has had only a couple of nonconfirmations—cases where the E-Verify system has flagged an employee’s citizenship status. The employee must then go to a Social Security office to sort out the matter, and the potential employer will be notified once the matter has been resolved.