DOL

On November 28, the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 applied the immigration and Nationality Act to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), The Department will administer certain immigration programs on CNMI. The Department has published FAQs to assist CNMI employers with obtaining prevailing wages.

The Department has posted FAQs explaining how one should notify the Atlanta National Processing Center of a change of address, change of legal representation, and other related actions.

To read FAQ, see the attachment: 

The Department has posted FAQs concerning the iCert system and LCAs, including information regarding FEINs(Federal Employer Identification Number). To read the FAQs please see attachment.

The Department has published in the Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the Temporary Agricultural Employment of H-2A Aliens in the United States. The Department is accepting comments on the proposed rulemaking until October 5, 2009.

To read the full text of the NPRM and to find out about the submission of comments, please check attachment.

An advance copy of technical changes contains a correction to the H-2B labor certification process. To be published in the Federal Register September 3, 2009.
The Final Rule re-engineers the application filing and review process by centralizing processing and by enabling employers to conduct pre-filing recruitment of United States (U.S.) workers.

Here is a document USDOL (Wage and Hour Division) is using to send to employees.  This outlines the factors USDOL is most interested in when investigating an employer.

The DOL released a memo to regional administrators and district directors regarding travel and visa expenses of H-2B workers under FLSA minimum wage laws. In January 2009, the Department ofHomeland Security delegated to Wage and Hour enforcement authority to ensure that H-2B workers are employed in compliance with the H-2B labor certification requirements. Wage and Hour issued regulations implementing this authority, 29 C.F.R. Part 655, which became effective on January 18,2009. Those regulations are applicable to applications for certifications filed on or after that date.

According to DOL updates as of July 31 2009, they are working on PERM application filed in the following months: No Audit/Final Review: November 2008 Audit: October 2007 Appeals: July 2007