BOLI does not enforce federal immigration or work authorization requirements – but we can help you navigate Oregon’s legal hiring and employment rules.
BOLI enforces civil rights protections and wage and hour laws for all employees working in Oregon,
regardless of immigration status.
State and federal anti-discrimination laws protect employees from being treated differently because of characteristics such as race, color, age, and gender. Among other characteristics,
employers also must not discriminate against employees or applicants based on
national origin.
Similarly, employers must not use immigration status as a pretext for discrimination based on protected classes, including race, color, or national origin.
Employees have a right to make good-faith complaints about wages, sick time, safety conditions, or other workplace protections.
Employers must not retaliate against employees by threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for inquiring about or registering complaints about health, safety, wages, or other workplace concerns.
Work Authorization and Federal Inspections
Work authorization is distinct from immigration status. Under federal law, employers face severe penalties if they hire employees not authorized to work in the United States. To comply with the law, employers must complete and retain a Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification Form) verifying the identity and employment authorization of each person they hire.
Employers may not discriminate based on national origin or engage in recruitment that has the purpose or effect of excluding applicants based on national origin. For more on navigating legal hiring requirements in Oregon, visit our fact sheets on
Hiring Discrimination and our checklist for
Hiring Your First Employees.
Best practices include calendaring expiring work authorization documents and updating those records as appropriate. If no applicable extension applies, continuing to employ someone whose temporary authorization has expired is unlawful. Remember, employees can choose which documents to submit to the employer for review as long as they are on the list of approved documents.
If employers receive
notice of a federal inspection of their I-9 records, they must
notify employees within three business days and provide workers with additional information. Businesses may use the
templates here to meet the law’s requirements.
Employers have the right
not to consent to officers' entry into non-public areas of a workplace if the officers do not have a
judicial warrant that gives them specific permission to enter.
Oregon is a Sanctuary State
Public bodies in Oregon may not cooperate with federal immigration officials or disclose to federal immigration officials information about any person such as their address, place of work or school, work or school hours, contact information, the identity of known relatives or associates or their contact information, or the date, time or location of any of their appointments, hearings or proceedings unless they are matters of public record or a court order applies.
Getting Help
BOLI enforces dozens of wage and hour, civil rights, and leave laws. Knowing which of these laws apply and what they require can be complex. Know that you can reach out for help.
If you are an employer, we can help you navigate Oregon’s legal hiring and employment rules. Our
Employer Assistance staff do not provide legal advice for specific situations, but we can provide information on applicable statutes and rules as well as HR best practices to help you make informed business decisions.
Employer Assistance maintains a firewall between BOLI’s enforcement divisions, so you never have to choose between triggering an investigation and getting the information you need.
Feel free to reach out directly at 971-361-8400 or
employer.assistance@boli.oregon.gov.
Resources
One of the highlights of our Annual Employment Law Conference was a panel discussion on Navigating Discrimination and Immigration Enforcement.
If you couldn’t join us, be sure to check out the recording!
Employer Assistance recently presented
Immigration Enforcement: What Oregon Employers Need to Know - Click here for links to the video and a PDF of the slide deck.
Click here for
additional resources on what to do if immigration enforcement arrives at your business.
You are welcome to check out and share our one-pager on immigrants’ rights at work in Oregon in English and Spanish. Click here for general information about discrimination on the job.
More on Oregon’s Sanctuary promise:
Oregon Department of Justice Sanctuary Promise Community Toolkit
Interested in periodic updates on employment law and BOLI training opportunities? Submit your email address from the "Subscribe for Updates" box at the bottom of this page.
The law
ORS 180.805 – Oregon’ sanctuary law
ORS 659A.030 – Oregon discrimination protections
Title 8 USC Chapter 12 - Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986