Whitman's Housekeeper Placement Service: Don't Blame Us!

[cal04]

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/whitmans_housekeeper_placement_service_dont_blame.php?ref=fpb

The placement agency that California GOP gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman used to hire Nicky Diaz as a housekeeper back in 2000 has issued a statement to Talking Points Memo, stating that they "did everything that was legally required and followed standard procedures at the time."

Diaz according to records provided by the Whitman campaign, falsely stated that she was able to work in the United States. Town & Country Resources concurred with the Whitman camp that Diaz had been untruthful.

But Diaz and her high-profile lawyer Gloria Allred alleged that Whitman and her husband knew about Diaz's immigration status. Whitman admitted that her husband may have signed off on a letter for the Social Security Administration which said that the Social Security number Diaz provided did not match with her name in their records.

"Since we believed her to be legal, I would have had no reason to suspect that she would not have filled it in and done what was needed to secure her benefits," Whitman's husband Dr. Griff Harsh said. "It is important to note what this letter actually says: 'this letter makes no statement about your employee's immigration status'."


The full statement from Town & Country Resources owners Jens and Carrie Hillen is as follows:

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/whitmans_housekeeper_placement_service_dont_blame.php?ref=fpb

[DURHAM D]

1. Whitman is a liar.

A new employee provides their employer with the necessary documents including an I-9, the Employer Eligibility Verification.

At the end of the year the employer issues a 1099 (paid wages) to the employee. They then report the issuance of said 1099 to the IRS on a form called a 1096. If the SS# is not a good number and/or does not tie back to said 1099 recipient the IRS immediately (within days) sends notification to the EMPLOYER that the number is not good and their employee has a problem.

Whitman would have received this document for several years. She decided to ignore it. Whitman is lying. There is absolutely no way they did not know.

[MiniMe]

2. Did they file a 1099 and a 1096?

You are assuming that Whitman didn't do it under the table.

[DURHAM D]

3. Yes.

Gloria Allred produced just one of those notices from the IRS that their employee's SS# did not match up.

[robdogbucky]

4. News cycles, news cycles, news cycles

this is a textbook example of political spin for the news cycles. Whitman's camp is currently catapulting an opinion by "immigration attorneys," that refutes the assertion that Nutmeg did anything wrong. On the face of it the story appears to give credence to the Whitman side of the story, that they didn't know of the illegal status and that when they did, they had to let her go. The story is couched as thus:

Whitman within law, immigration lawyers say
Carolyn Lochhead, Chronicle Washington Bureau

San Francisco Chronicle October 1, 2010 04:00 AM Copyright San Francisco Chronicle. All rights reserved.
Friday, October 1, 2010

(10-01) 04:00 PDT Washington - --

"Whether or not Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman received a letter from the Social Security Administration saying her former housekeeper's false documents did not match its records, Whitman did not act unlawfully by keeping the housekeeper employed, immigration lawyers said Thursday.

In fact, had she gone ahead and fired Nicandra Diaz Santillan based on such a letter, she would have exposed herself to potential anti-discrimination violations, lawyers said.

Whitman says she wasn't aware of receiving a "no-match" letter.

"There is no additional legal obligation for an employer to follow up or respond to SSA with new information," said Gening Liao, a labor and employment attorney at the National Immigration Law Center in Los Angeles, which defends immigrants..."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/01/MN931FME32.DTL&tsp=1#ixzz118oy8


Sounds plausible, right? Sounds legit, especially when that lawyer is said to "defend immigrants." Not so fast my friend. The internet is a wonderful thing and can expose one to the truth if one cares to look under the covers a bit. This source is hardly an immigrants' advocate or any other kind of authority that can be relied upon for such an opinion. It would appear they are a management oriented outfit, seeking to find ways to enhance the labor pool for the wealthiest corporations. Now where would ol' Nutmeg ever come across an outfit like that? Hmmmmmmmmmmmm?

A reader of SFGate then offers this insight into the quoted attorney:


"What a scam, nothing on their web site involves helping little immigrants but big corporations trying to import workers to take American jobs........ The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) represents businesses that have sponsored highly-skilled workers overseas who are attempting to enter the United States on a temporary or permanent basis. In July 2007, AILA filed a class action lawsuit against the United States federal Citizenship and Immigration Service, after the government rejected thousands of applications for Green cards from highly skilled immigrants."



Control the news cycle. That is what this is all about. Be the one that has the last message that can resonate with the voting public over the weekend.


Get out the popcorn.



Just my dos centavos


robdogbucky