There are a lot of things for domestic employers to worry about when it comes to PERM applications. In particular, there have been a number of cases over the years that have simply been erroneously denied for reasons that have nothing to do with the quality of the application. Other issues with the process have to do with long wait times, and the inability to get any type of feedback from the DOL, especially when it comes to requests for reconsiderations. However, these issues all pale in comparison to the one area that receives the most scrutiny from the DOL, and hence the most cause for denial. This area is the domestic recruitment practices.
Challenges of PERM
The difficulty in filling out a domestic recruitment profile has to do with two major concerns. The first concern is the information of the job being sought. Often times the DOL will deny certification because the employer did not include the right kind of information in their job recruitment efforts. Another major concern in the recruitment stage is the type of job advertisement that has been undertaken. Employers often think they have completed all the right types of recruitment, but have actually missed one crucial component.
The most popular example pertains to the extra recruitment efforts that are required of professional positions. The DOL states that for all jobs, employers must follow through with recruitment in the form of a job order, advertisements in newspapers, an in house posting. For professional jobs, the DOL states that employers must go through with all the standard recruitment practices just listed, as well as doing three of the following: attend a job fair, post on employers website, post on a job search website, do some on-campus recruiting, contact trade or professional organizations, contact private employment firms, work with an employment referral program, post the job at a campus placement office, post in ethnic newspapers, or do some radio or TV advertisement.
Solutions: Work With Attorney and Ad Specialists
For employers about to embark on a PERM certification application, they should know that there are many resources around to help. When it comes to getting all the paperwork in order, working with an attorney that specializes in PERM or immigration labor regulations is a great resource. When it comes to the advertisement component, it’s often a smart idea to work with advertising specialists who have the contacts for newspapers and radio, know the steps involved for each different category of application (for example, whether it is a professional job or not), and can keep official documentation of all recruitment efforts to bolster a PERM application. Working with labor advertisement specialists means that all concerns about proof and description of the job will be taken care of by an expert team of writers that knows how to speak the language of immigration with the DOL.
