“Since taking office, President Donald Trump has introduced sweeping changes to immigration enforcement through a series of executive orders aimed at expanding both the legal authorities used to enforce immigration laws and the infrastructure needed to accomplish deportations …  [The president’s] Border Czar, Tom Homan, has advocated for workplace enforcement that targets unauthorized workers and the businesses that hire them. Employers should be prepared for increased I-9 audits and ICE enforcement actions.” What the New Administration’s Increased Immigration Enforcement Means for Employers, Duane Morris (February 25, 2025) (emphasis supplied).

By the I-9 process, federal law requires employers to verify the identity and work eligibility of new employees and to terminate any worker upon discovery of unauthorized immigration status. Violators are subject to civil fines and potential criminal prosecution. See, e.g., Salas v. Sierra Chemical Co., 59 Cal.4th 407 (2014).

On the other hand, in United States v. California, 921 F.3d 865 (2019), the federal Ninth Circuit confirmed California employers have specific obligations to their workers if faced with immigration officials seeking to remove a suspected illegal migrant from the premises. Under this state’s Immigrant Worker Protection Act (“AB 450”), short of a judicial warrant, company management is prohibited from allowing immigration agents to enter nonpublic workplace areas or to access employee records. Employers also must notify workers within 72 hours of receiving immigration agency notice of an impending I-9 audit as well as provide a copy of the agency’s audit results to any employee identified as potentially out of status.

The U.S. Supreme Court denied the prior Trump administration’s request to review that decision, leaving AB 450 in place.

Take-aways:

California employers must comply with federal and state laws regarding immigration enforcement actions in the workplace.  Best practices include appointment of a  management liaison for ICE, able to distinguish an I-9 audit request from a workplace raid and to properly navigate both.  Audits usually come on a formal notice of inspection, requiring employer response within three days unless extended by agreement.  Raids are disruptive law enforcement activities requiring judicial warrant for any immediate inspection of premises or records and possible detentions.

For more detailed guidance, see Trump’s Immigration Crackdown: Key Policies & Impact on Businesses, WoodsRogers (February 4, 2025); and  Trump Takes Swift Immigration Action: What Employers Need to Know, FisherPhillips (January 25, 2025).

See also:

• Stay in Your Lane, Driver’s License Discrimination (December 5, 2024)
• Hiring Authorized Workers I-9 Forms Best Practices (July 5, 2024)
• I-9 Rules Change Again – Remote Verification Possible for E-Verify Users (August 17, 2023)
• California Labor Laws 2015 Unfair Immigration-Related Practices – California Extends Protections for Whistleblowing Employees (December 31, 2014)

Tim Bowles
March 28, 2025