LOUISIANA – The federal government filed a lawsuit against a Louisiana crane company for discriminating against people who have permission to work in this country, officials said.
The Justice Department announced Friday that it had filed a lawsuit against Louisiana Crane Company LLC , which is headquartered in Eunice, Louisiana.
The complaint alleges that Louisiana Crane violated the Immigration and Nationality Act’s anti-discrimination provision by creating hurdles for immigrants during the employment eligibility verification process because of their citizenship status.
Specifically, the complaint states that, from at least January 2013 until at least September 2013, Louisiana Crane required employees who it believed to be non-U.S. citizens to present specific documentation for the Form I-9 and/or E-Verify, but allowed those believed to be U.S. citizens the flexibility to present a variety of documents.
The Immigration and Naturalization Act’s anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from discriminating against people with permission to work in the United States because of their citizenship status.
“The law protects people who have permission to work from facing discriminatory obstacles during employment eligibility verification,” said Molly Moran, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “It is important that all people who have permission to work in the United States face an equal playing field when proving their work authorization.”