STAFF EDIT: No match, no solution

As the federal government seeks solutions to problems regarding illegal immigration and the employment of undocumented worked in the United States, it needs to make sure its methods are well thought out and legally and economically feasible. When the Department of Homeland Security announced in August it would send “no-match” letters to employers to inform them of workers whose Social Security numbers and employment information did not match up and of a new requirement for employers to resolve the issue within 90 days or fire workers — or else face legal persecution or sanctions — the Bush administration abdicated responsibility for finding a nuanced and responsible immigration solution.

The plan to send no-match letters to employers appears to be a way for the government to use employers as proxy immigration officers, to solve problems it is unwilling or unable to address. Turning private-sector institutions into law enforcers is irresponsible and shows a complete lack of forethought for the economic ramifications of removing millions of people from the workforce within three months of the stalled plan’s start date.

John Sweeny, president of the AFL-CIO, told The Wall Street Journal 70 percent of Social Security number discrepancies refer to legal citizens who only make mistakes when filling out employee information forms. No-match letters would not only create problems where none exist, but also encourage a suspicious and hostile environment for workers. To base immigration enforcement on the ability of human resources workers, employers and bureaucrats to perfectly process employee information is ridiculous. When typos can determine the fate of employees who are set in an aggressive immigration climate, the government is not doing its job.

Federal court Judge Charles Breyer of the Ninth District in California, who issued an order indefinitely delaying the federal measure from taking effect, rightly questioned why Homeland Security could make a decision with such far-reaching effects without explaining its legal reasoning or considering the immediate result of a loss of millions of employees from the workforce.

The administration planned to send out letters this fall to 140,000 businesses that employ 8 million people. However, employers are not meant to serve as agents of the government. By providing information about employees to the government, they are complying with reasonable and necessary requests. It is the responsibility of the government, not private citizens, to resolve immigration disputes and take action against undocumented, or misdocumented, workers. To mount a witch hunt for undocumented workers and hound employees about Social Security numbers, employers will need to give up significant time for the task — and figure out how to quickly replace lost workers without losing economic footing.

As the federal government works to fix the undocumented worked situation, it needs to change strategies rather than turn private-sector employers into police officers while it delays finding a real solution for a problem it has made talk about, but failed to rationally address.