Do employers have to check the work authorization of their independent sub contractors?
A. No — The Arizona’s state law follows the federal E-Verify rules: Only newly hired employees are subject to E-Verification. An employee is anyone on whom you must fill out an I-9. Arizona law does not require employers to verify that an independent sub contractor’s workers were hired through the E-Verify program (unless the employer is contracted with the federal government. However, Arizona DOES require independent sub contractors to use E-Verify for their own new hires — but under Arizona law, employers utilizing independent contractors are not responsible to ascertain that the independent contractor hires their workers through E-Verify. However, the federal government may take action against an employer if that employer knows or should have known that an independent contractor used illegal labor. For added protection, it’s advisable for employers to require its independent sub contractors to sign affidavits saying that they use E-Verify for their own employee verification.
