Just a few years ago, illegal immigrants were estimated to comprise 12 million, or 1 in 20 workers in the United States. To many, these numbers evoke economic issues. As New York City's mayor reportedly observed, "Although they broke the law by illegally crossing our borders or overstaying their visas and our business broke the law by employing them, our city's economy would be a shell of itself had they not, and it would collapse if they were deported."
But, economic impact and business liability are not the only issues. Employment of illegal immigrants by families and individuals can also violate federal civil and criminal laws. Further, since there are a large number of illegal immigrants working in the private household services industry, many U.S. citizens risk violating these laws. A recent, rather extreme, situation illustrates some potential violations.
According to a recently-filed federal criminal complaint, around October 2005, the George family hired an illegal immigrant as a live-in domestic servant responsible for cooking, cleaning, and caring for their children. Although they promised to pay her $1,000 per month, the Georges never completed any employment application, tax forms, or any other documents related to lawful employment. The immigrant spent the next several years working from 5:45 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. every day of the week without any leave time or medical treatment.
Federal authorities intervened when Homeland Security Investigations received a lead originating from the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline regarding the alleged indentured servitude of an illegal alien. Now, Ms. George faces both civil and criminal penalties (Mr. George is deceased).
Based on the alleged 17-hour work days, it appears the immigrant was only paid about 85 cents per hour. Thus, Ms. George likely violated minimum wage requirements of $7.25 per hour. Further, an investigation by the United States Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division indicates that Ms. George may owe the immigrant approximately $206,000 in unpaid wages for nearly six years of work, not to mention any unpaid employment taxes that the IRS may seek from her. Even worse, criminal charges of harboring an illegal alien and possible tax evasion raise the possibility of significant fines and years of imprisonment.
While the George case is particularly egregious, it nonetheless highlights wage, tax, and even criminal law issues related to the employment of illegal immigrants that apply to or should be considered by anyone that chooses to do so.
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