Can someone please advise me on how to handle this situation?

I had a great employee walk into my office and tell me that the paperwork he used to get a job with us was incorrect. He "borrowed" someone else's last name, etc and now wants to use his "real" name.

You can only imagine the surprise on my face :eek: and my complete dumbfoundedness at this statement.

Other than the obvious faux pax above, he's been a great employee... honest about everything else; even the "minutes" he works.

Thank you for your help!

I'm glad you are seeking advice as red flags should be waving high.

First, many employers have a policy that falsafying an employment application may be grounds for immediate dismissal. If your company has such a policy, you may be obligued to comply.

Second, if your worker provided false documentation at time of hire, he may have done so because he might not be legally eligible for employment in the United States. Part of the hiring process is to check this information (via I-9) and do a social security number verification with SSA.

If this were my employee, today would be his last day. He's put your firm in jeopardy. This is not just a simple change to my correct name. The "what ifs" are endless. What if he's an illegal? What if he's done this to skip on child support? or an IRS tax levy? etc. etc. etc.

I will second everything stated by robb71 and add that most, if not all, standard job applications contain language therein that states any false information will lead to immediate termination.

My gut tells me he is trying to beat child support.If he is a good employee and honest like you said.
I would sit down and find out why in the name of Christ he would falsify documents.You may be able to work it out.
JoeC

Sorry but that kind of dishonesty I would not tolerate. More likely than trying ot get outof child support is that his documentation he used to get hired was "creatively obtained". Regardless of his reason he put the company in jeopardy on multiple counts by his dishonesty. Had you been audited for I-9's or tax records, you could have faced fines and penalties because of what he did. No way is that acceptable.

The employer wouldn’t be liable if he accepted the documentation in good faith. Employers are not document examiners. The government itself gets fake I-9 forms all the time. Even on jobs with security clearances! Now that the employer is aware he must do what is legal, and protect himself from liability. Unfortunately that may well be sending the employee down the road.
However a good employee that makes money for a company (particularly a small company with low overhead) may very well loose a good employee, which has potential to increase profit. This is any business primary responsibilty. I don’t know if the O.P is a business owner but he obviously sees potential.
Something to think about firing “at-will” is done by mediocre managers that don’t last long before their told to clean out their own desks. One thing is certain by law once you are aware you must correct the problem quickly to avoid liability.
JoeC

Joec, I understand that every situation has a flip-side. Even good managers get put in a situation of having to make a difficult choice. One thing the rings clear in my mind is if the company policy says you are terminated for falsifying a job application, I'd be hard pressed not to do so in a similar situation.

Let me give this analogy. At my company we often use "temps" to fill vacancies. If the "temp" has been working out and we are otherwise unable to find a "suitable" replacement, we do make permanant job offers to the "temp". It's happened more than once that the "temp" has been exceptional and changed to less than mediocre after hire. In the back of my mind, I'm thinking that this employee may have exhibited model behavior knowing that he's been dishonest. Who's to say that he'll turn down the road of the "temp" I mentioned. No one knows 100% but that's my fear.

Never said it was easy Robbi,it is difficult these things often are.No matter which way you go.
JoeC

While you may avoid liability by demonstrating a "good faith" effort to verify the information, the employer in question does not have control over whether the investigator or auditor will find that they have made a good faith effort. Particularly once they find out that the employee did indeed lie, I should wouldn't be the one to try and defend "good faith" for keeping them on board.

Moreover, if you make exceptions for any policies that are clearly broken, then you better be prepared to explain to others whom for whom you don't make that same exception. While the reason, to wit, he/she was a better, more profitable employee, may make good business sense, I would not count on a court of law or governmental agency necessarily buying into that as the employer faces a lawsuit for wrongful termination.

Think of it this way...

You ask him the reason and he provides you with one that explains the behavior.

Someone that is that creative with ID wouldn't lie, right?

For all you know, this guy is a fugitive felon and is looking for another nest of victims. Okay, so I am being intentionally dramatic...

In fact, I would call the cops to avoid any perceived harboring issues later from a professional or personal level.

I don't understand why this isn't a no-brainer. He lied about his identity. Buh-bye!!!!!!!

I really appreciate everyone's input and although knowing what needs to be done; I would like to see some further discussion on the topic to prevent this from happening again in the future...

Upon hiring this employee, he provided me with a resident alien id and ss card for the I-9. In "good faith" I accepted these forms of id as accurate documents, made copies and placed them in his employee file.

1. What could I have done differently?

2. What kind of company liabilities/penalties, etc. would the company have to pay and why? (If we have the correct documents on file, although subsequently found out not valid.)

3. Upon talking with others, I have heard that some of these employees will try to come back after fired with different names, ids, etc proclaiming to be "related" to the previous employee that was fired. Then what?

4. Where do my responsibilities begin and end on believing prospective employees?

Perhaps I'm being a bit niave, but all this is new to me. I thought that if I checked forms of ids that comply with the I-9, I have done my job. I have also found out that you cannot legally require an employee to let you copy his SS card. If this info gets out, then what? How will I have proof I checked the ids without copies of them in the file? or is it better to just say, "Yes, I saw the required ids." and be done with it?

I know I'm asking a lot of questions... I appreciate your input!
Thank you!

Friend, there are things things you might could have done differently, but it is not at all clear to me that you SHOULD have done anything differetntly, or that you or your company are at risk now. Check out the uscis web site at www.uscis.gov. You are not expected to be a documents expert or to be able to spot an adequate forgery. If you were presented to reasonable looking documents that satisfied the documents requirement of the I-9, it is doubtful the feds would do anything about the ee working there...up to the point where you learned it was all a fabrication. What you do from this point on, now knowing the ee lied, could impact what the feds do...if the feces ever hit the fan.

1/2/4. Probably nothing. If the documents "appeared" to be genuine, and you've been staying up on what the appropriate documents are and what they look like, you've done your due diligence.

3. So what if they claim they're related. Again, do your due diligence.

Your choice as to whether you keep copies of the documents or not. Just make sure that if you decide to, you do it for EVERY new hire.

And SS cards can be faked just like everything else. Some are better fakes than others.

The other thing you can do is avail yourself of the SSA's Employment Verification Service (EVS) to at least confirm that the name and SSN match (they'll also ask for gender and birthdate). Although legally, you can't check until they're hired, you can do it on the first day worked. Check http://www/ssa.gov for information on EVS.

Just another note, I-9 and supporting documents should not be in your personnel files. These documents should be maintained separately.

It is perfectly legal to keep the I-9 in the personnel file, it just isn't a best practice.

It also is better not to have copies of the documents with the I-9. It isn't required that you make copies, just that you view them. If it later is audited, if you have the copies there, it *can* be used against you if there is something about the document that indicates it is not genuine such as the wrong font or a missing seal. It may not be obvious to the casual observer, but I wouldn't want to try and explain why I overlooked some indication that the document wasn't real. If the copies are not there, then the auditor/investigator has to take your word for it that they appeared to be genuine. When you sign the I-9 you are verifying that you did see the documents and they appeared genuine.

It is perfectly legal to require to see the SSCard upon hire. You can not dictate this must be used for the I-9, but you can require that they present you with one. Many employers do this to ensure that their payroll then hence tax documents match the SSN.

Just to clarify, if the employee doesn't have an SS card to show you after hire, or outright refuses to show it to you, you don't have any legal recourse. All the law says is that you can ask to see it and the employee must show it to you "if it is available". Whatever that means. :rolleyes:

"They" really don't make this easy, do they? :(

How are we supposed to comply???? :mad:

On the other hand, you guys are great and I really appreciate everything! :D

"They" don't expect you to be perfect. "They" know that you are not a trained investigator and that sometimes you're going to miss a fake document. You won't be held liable for the occasional slip. I'm sure we've all missed one occasionally. :)

You will be held liable for continuing to knowingly employ someone who is not legally able to work. And if he's been using a fake name, the chance that he is working illegally is overwhelming.

I agree with the others. This is a no-brainer. I don't care if he walks on water as an employee - he's out the door. :(

You guys that are talking about this being a no brainier, all work for big firms the O.P could be a sole proprietor that may not be able to afford to let a a good working employee go. It’s easy to say no brainier when you got a large operating budget.
JoeC

My answer would be exactly the same no matter what size employer. If this fellow is illegal, it's illegal no matter how big the employer is. And are you telling me that you're okay with being lied to?

I would think it would be much EASIER for a small company than a large one to fire him... because the actions of that one person could have a much more profound impact on the business and its profit and reputation.

If Microsoft accidentally hires a worker that is really a fugitive, it is just interesting news - and the company survives because it's reputation is bigger than any one employee. If a 3 man plumbing business makes the same mistake, it trashes your name in the community.

Also, if that person embezzles $25,000 from Microsoft, they can weather that storm, but most small businesses couldn't afford that loss without closing their doors.

Just the way I would look at it...

A sole proprietor can least afford fines and repercussions if they are audited. All it takes is one phone call from a disgruntled friend, coworker, neighbor or competitor that this guy lied. Don't think for a second that no one else knows his real name is Jim and he told you Bob, or that coworkers aren't going to suddenly wonder why his name is now something different.

If your best employee is one who is that dishonest and lies to you from the get go, you have much bigger problems. And what kind of message does that send everyone else? That it is ok to lie so long as you do your job well or the employer would rather not seek a replacement? That the laws are really not worth following?

If you don't want to term for lying, how about because he broke the law? completing a I-9 and swearing that you are who you say is blantantly illegal.

You guys that are talking about this being a no brainier, all work for big firms the O.P could be a sole proprietor that may not be able to afford to let a a good working employee go. It’s easy to say no brainier when you got a large operating budget.
JoeC

There are some issues that are so serious that there is no decision to make and this is one of them. Failure to properly pay SSI, Medicare, State tax, Federal tax just to mention a few. Don't even get me started on the risks asociated with improper I-9 documentation. Fact is, this employee lied and has put this employer at risk.

Termination is the only proper course of action irrespective of the size of the employer. In fact, you can build a good case that this is far more serious for a smaller employer as they most likely have limited resources to defend themselves from the onslaught of federal agencies that would be lining up should they become aware of this.

Take a smoke break and come back to earth boys.I never said what he did was right.
The O.P is well aware he can fire the guy he does not need any advise on that the question he posed was can he keep him legally? The ansewer is yes straighten out the paper work their is no law saying he has to fire the guy.
JoeC

If the employee is working illegally yes, they do have to fire him.

Ok, in the interests of being an open minded person, I took your advice and went on a smoke break. I also had dinner, slept 6 hours, had coffee, had another smoke and came back to earth.

Now it's time to get the facts correct. The OP DID NOT ask if he can keep the guy legally as you state...he asked "Can someone please advise me on how to handle this situation?"

Now that we have straightened that out...I'm off for another smoke break.

And I think we've dealt with this issue quite long enough. OP, if you have any questions that have not been addressed, feel free to start a new thread.