Ins Computer Monitors Job Seekers

In an effort to crack down on illegal immigrants taking U.S. jobs, the Immigration and Naturalization Service is turning to a computerized system that allows companies to quickly learn whether an applicant is eligible for employment.

With the cooperation of some of the nation’s largest meatpacking companies, INS will operate a system with which a job applicant’s name can be checked against an INS database to learn whether he is a naturalized citizen or a foreigner authorized to work in America.

“This innovative computer-based project allows employers to verify that they are hiring authorized workers,” INS Commissioner Doris Meissner said Thursday.

Meissner said the pilot program includes four of the nation’s largest meatpacking companies “We are very pleased to be part of a cooperative effort between business and government,” said Ken Kimbro, a vice president with IBP, a meatpacking concern based in Dakota City, Neb. “We see this as a supplement to the screening process that reduces the chance for error.”

The plan works this way:

After an employer reviews a non-citizen employee’s documentation, the employer dials into the INS system, using an access code. The employer types in selected information about the employee, which is checked against the INS database.

In less than a minute, the worker’s employment is authorized, or the computer asks for additional information.