Inspection Report: IG-0850

The Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley) is a research laboratory managed by the Department's Berkeley Site Office (Site Office). Berkeley, operated under contract by the University of California, conducts unclassified research across a wide range of scientific disciplines, employing approximately 4,200 scientists, engineers, support staff and students. In addition to its Fiscal Year 2010 budget of approximately $707 million, Berkeley
received an additional $104 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). Much of this funding is being used in combination with Department funds to complete infrastructure upgrades through the use of contractors and subcontractors, resulting in temporary workers gaining access to the Berkeley site.
The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (the Act) makes it illegal for employers to knowingly hire and continue to employ individuals who are not eligible to work (unauthorized workers) in the United States (U.S.). To comply with the Act, employers must complete an Employment Eligibility Verification Form (Form I-9) for each employee at the time of hiring.
Because of potential security concerns associated with unauthorized workers, we initiated this inspection to determine whether contractors who were awarded contracts for infrastructure upgrades at Berkeley, including their subcontractors, verified the employment eligibility of their employees in accordance with Federal requirements prior to those employees accessing the site.