Labor Certification

PERM: Labor Certification, Green Card

• One of the most commonly used avenues for obtaining U.S. Permanent Residency (i.e., a "green card") through employment is through the PERM Labor Certification process.
• In general, this process requires a U.S. employer to offer a foreign national a permanent, full time, job, and to "sponsor" the individual by fiilng this type of case. 
• The key part of this process is the recruitment process, by which the U.S. employer must undertake a recruitment process, conforming to specific requirements, in order to establish that there are no U.S. workers to fill the position which is being offered to the foreign national.  This is what is known as "Labor Certification".  (Other detailed requirements and rules apply).
• This process is available for most types of jobs; however, there are certain jobs which do not qualify because the law deems that there are sufficient U.S. workers to fill those jobs, as a matter of law.

Will placing an advertisement on America's Job Bank (AJB) satisfy the "web site other than the employer's" additional step requirement for professional occupations?

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, but only if the placement is not being used to satisfy the job order requirement. Where the State Workforce Agency job order placement procedure consists of placement of the job order on AJB, then that job order placement can not be counted as one of the additional recruiting steps.

According to the Labor Department:

When entering the years of experience, education, or training on ETA Form 9089, the questions asking for this type of information specify the answer be provided in the number of months necessary. Therefore, if the employer requires 1 year experience in the job offered in ETA Form 9089, the number 12 (for 12 months) would be entered for the answer to Question H-6A.

However, if the employer would accept a range of experience in the job offered (such as 1 to 3 years), the employer must identify the actual minimum years/months of experience required to perform the job (please see 656.17(i) for additional information on Actual Minimum Requirements). The number that represents the Actual Minimum Requirement for the number of years/months experience would be the number entered in Question H-6A. If a range is indeed the Actual Minimum Requirement, the employer should use the low end of the range as the answer, since that represents the minimum level of requirement.

According to the Labor Department:

If a labor certification is denied or revoked, the employer may make a request for review to the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) by submitting, in writing and within 30 days of the date of the determination, a request to the Certifying Officer who denied or revoked the application.

What is meant by the "employer's being able to place the alien on the payroll" under § 656.10(c)(4)? How does it differ from having funds available to pay the alien's wage or salary in § 656.10(c)(3)?

According to the Labor Department:

The employer may be required, depending on the circumstances, to establish that the position offered is actually available at the time of the alien's proposed entrance into the United States. For example, the employer may be asked to provide evidence that a plant or restaurant, which is in the planning stage or under construction at the time the application is filed, will be completed at the time of the alien's proposed entrance into the United States. While the employer may be fiscally able to pay the alien, other circumstances, such as non-viability of the business itself, may preclude the employer from placing the alien on the payroll.

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, the employer can include a foreign language requirement if it is justified by business necessity. The regulation requires that a foreign language requirement be justified by business necessity based on the nature of the occupation, e.g., translator, or the need to communicate with a large majority of the employer's customers, contractors, or employees who can not communicate effectively in English. Documentation necessary to establish such a business necessity is noted in § 656.17(h)(2).

NOTE: Needing to communicate with co-workers or subordinates who can not effectively communicate in English and/or having a working environment where safety considerations would support a foreign language requirement have been added to the ways to justify business necessity for a foreign language requirement.

When must the advertisement for the job opportunity be placed in the national professional journal under the optional special recruitment provision?

According to the Labor Department:

The national professional journal advertisement for the job opportunity as required under the optional special recruitment provision must have been placed during the recruitment period prior to the selection of alien.

According to the Labor Department:

No, under existing regulations, Schedule B applications are not eligible for the RIR process.

According to the Labor Department:

No, the employer can not use an electronic national professional journal. The employer must use a print journal whether to satisfy the provision permitting the use of a journal as an alternative to one of the Sunday advertisements or to satisfy the provision requiring an advertisement in a journal under optional special recruitment procedures for college and university teachers.

According to the Labor Department:

Prior to filing the Application for Permanent Employment Certification, ETA Form 9089, the employer must request a prevailing wage determination from the State Workforce Agency (SWA) having jurisdiction over the proposed area of intended employment. The employer is required to include on the ETA Form 9089 the SWA provided information: the prevailing wage, the prevailing wage tracking number (if applicable), the SOC/O*NET(OES) code, the occupation title, the skill level, the wage source, the determination date, and the expiration date.

NOTE: The SWA prevailing wage determination documentation is not submitted with the application, but it must be retained for a period of five years from the date of filing the application by the employer.

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, the employer may advertise with a wage range as long as the bottom of the range is no less than the prevailing wage rate.

Does PERM have a provision similar to, or the same as, the Schedule B provision in the regulation in effect prior to March 28, 2005?

According to the Labor Department:

No, the former regulation's Schedule B provision has been eliminated; there is no similar provision in PERM.

In order to establish a "pattern of recruitment," which date is used as the reference point – the date the original application was received or the date the RIR conversion request is received?

According to the Labor Department:

The point of reference for the pattern of recruitment is based upon the date the RIR conversion request was received. In other words, the earliest acceptable published advertisement or other recruitment activity must have occurred within six months prior to the date the RIR conversion request was received by the BEC. Earlier advertisements or other recruiting activities will not be considered by the BEC in determining whether a pattern of recruitment has been established.

I have multiple positions available for the same occupation and job classifications and at the same rate of pay. May I post a Notice of Filing for the same occupation and job classifications with a single posting?

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, an employer can satisfy Notice of Filing requirements with respect to several positions in each of these job classifications with a single Notice of Filing posting, as long as the single posting complies with the Department of Labor's regulation for each application (e.g. contains the appropriate prevailing wage information and the Notice of Filing must be posted for 10 consecutive business days during the 30 to 180 day time window prior to filing the application). For instance, separate notices would have to be posted for an attending nurse and a supervisory nurse (e.g. nurses containing different job duties).

NOTE: At the time of filing the labor certification, the prevailing wage information must not have changed, the job opportunity must remain the same and all other Department of Labor regulatory requirements must be followed.

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, as long as provisions regarding the validity period are followed, the employer is permitted to use the same prevailing wage determination if the prevailing wage is for the same occupation and skill level; the same wage source is applicable; and the same area of intended employment is involved.

Is an application for a labor certification for Schedule A occupations filed with a Department of Labor National Processing Center?

According to the Labor Department:

No, an application for a labor certification for Schedule A occupations is filed, in duplicate, with the appropriate Department of Homeland Security (DHS) office.

According to the Labor Department:

Certifying Officers have the authority to revoke an approved labor certification for fraud and willful misrepresentation, obvious errors, or for grounds or issues associated with the labor certification process.

According to the Labor Department:

No. Due to the Office of Foreign Labor Certification's (OFLC) intensive effort to eliminate the backlog, it is not practical for the BEC to delay recruitment on applications to await RIR conversion requests. Therefore, BECs will not delay recruitment to allow for RIR conversion. Requests for RIR conversion must be received prior to the beginning of supervised recruitment to be considered. Employers should send their requests and appropriate documentation as soon as possible to maximize their opportunity for RIR conversion.

According to the Labor Department:

First, check to make sure you entered the correct case number. Even a slight variation from the correct number can cause no case information to be found. If you are sure you entered the correct case number and no case information is found, contact the appropriate BEC that has your case at info@dal.dflc.us or info@phi.dflc.us.

During the public briefings, the Department indicated that there will be 2 processing tracks—Reduction in Recruitment (RIR) and Traditional Recruitment (TR). As to the First in-First out (FIFO) principle, does this mean RIR cases will be separated or distinguished from permanent TR cases?

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, there will be two processing tracks—RIR and TR. Each track will have a separate FIFO queue. At the centers we will allocate resources so that RIR and TR cases receive equitable treatment in processing