The workshop was originally scheduled for January 21, but was canceled due to severe winter weather. The rescheduled program will begin at 1:00 p.m., on Wednesday, March 25, in the Iowa Room, of Iowa Hall, at Kirkwood Community College.
Grassley said the event is free-of-charge and open to all area business owners and managers interested in learning more about the immigration process and the work place. He said the program is designed to help Iowa employers access information and follow requirements of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS).
The afternoon workshop will be moderated by Loren Coppock, former president of the Cedar Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce. Questions about labor certification will be answered by John McDonald, of the Iowa Workforce Center. A representative from the INS Northern Service Center will discuss the application process for immigrant and non-immigrant visas. Mike Smith, of the INS District Office in Omaha, will discuss how Iowa businesses can access the voluntary employment verification pilot program established by the immigration reform package approved by Congress and the President in 1996. Iowa was chosen in September as a test site for the new voluntary Machine- Readable Document Pilot because of the state's technologically advanced identification systems, including drivers' licenses.
"Many Iowa businesses are concerned about recruiting and retaining employees," Grassley said. "My office often receives questions such as, should I hire a foreign national as a temporary or permanent employee? Or, how can I verify that the individual applying for a certain position is legally in the U.S.? This workshop is designed to help area employers and business managers better understand the immigration process and to obtain practical information to help them make hiring decisions."
In the U.S. Senate, Grassley is a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, where he serves on the Subcommittee on Immigration. He worked from start-to-finish on the comprehensive Illegal Immigration Reform Act of 1996. As part of the bill, Grassley won passage of amendments to empower local police to take action against illegal immigration in their own communities and to keep the resources of religious charities and non-profits free to directly help those in need. Grassley also helped to incorporate into the new law an amendment which requires a minimum of 10 INS officers in each of the 50 states.
To sign up for the program, interested parties should contact Mary Day, Regional Director for Sen. Grassley in Cedar Rapids, at 319/1363-6832, or by fax at 319/363-7179. Advance notification is required for participation in the workshop.