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01/21/2010 - iCert Portal Now Online for Prevailing Wage Determination Request Submission
The Department of Labor's iCert Portal, online since last summer for Labor Condition Application submissions in connection with H-1Bs, H-1B1s, and E-3s, has now been modified to accept Prevailing Wage Determination requests.
Since January 1 of this year, all of these requests are handled centrally at the Federal Department of Labor's office in Washington, D.C. rather than at individual State Department of Labor Offices.
This will hopefully speed up use of the new centralized system, and at least make determinations consistent.
Employers utilizing the H-1B, H-1B1, H-2B, E-3, and PERM programs, as well as sponsored foreign national employees.
12/28/2009 - New Prevailing Wage System in Place After the New Year
With the start of 2010, the U.S. Department of Labor is instituting a new system of obtaining the Prevailing Wage Determinations necessary for H-1B, H-2 and PERM petitions and applications.
These determinations, previously made at the state level based on the federal OES survey, will now be made at a centralized location in Washington, D.C.
The request process will ultimately be integrated into the Department of Labor's iCert portal, but for at least the first 20 days of the new year request will only be accepted through traditional mail.
It remains to be seen what impact the new system will have upon the speed of prevailing wage determinations - or their accuracy. In many states attorneys previously enjoyed the ability to directly contact prevailing wage analysts to resolve issues by phone, often with a degree of congeniality; those days are likely gone - problems will likely take far longer to resolve under the new system.
Employers filing H-1B, H-2 and PERM cases, employees anxiously awaiting such cases.
12/22/2009 - H-1B Cap Reached
USCIS has announced that it has reached the annual cap limit for H-1B visas for fiscal 2010, and has stopped accepting new H-1B petitions as of December 21, 2009.
This cuts off what had been a still-existent option for employment for companies and degreed foreign nationals. On the other hand, the acceleration in H-1B usage over the past few months may indicate a sign that the economy - and perhaps overall employment - is improving.
Any company seeking to hire a foreign national for an H-1B specialty occupation position, or or foreign national seeking to begin an H-1B specialty occupation position, before October 1, 2010.
11/30/2009 - Upcoming Speaking Engagement: Stuart Reich to Speak at AILA's New York Chapter Symposium
Mr. Reich will speak as part of a panel discussion on practical considerations for startup small and solo immigration law firms as part of the Twelfth Annual New York Chapter Immigration Law Symposium, along with colleagues AILA past-President Jan Brown and Lindsay Curcio.
09/08/2009 - New E-Verify Rule for Federal Contractors/Subcontractors Effective Today
As of today, all contractors and subcontractors signing contracts to do business with the federal government - even those who receive American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds - are required to utilize the E-Verify on-line employment eligibility verification system to verify that employees are legally authorized to accept employment in the United States.
Federal contracts constitute an enormous part of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and an exceptionally large number of U.S. employers are engaged in government work and likely to be impacted by this rule.
Any company/employer performing work for the federal government. any company/employer who wishes to pursue federal contracts in the future. Any employee of such a company.