On December 19, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it has secured an agreement with Burford’s Construction LLC, an Alabama-based contractor that provides vegetation clearing and maintenance for electrical utility companies and municipalities. The agreement resolves DOJ’s determination that Burford’s “routinely discriminated against lawful permanent residents when verifying their permission to work by demanding specific, and sometimes unnecessary, documents.”
After conducting an investigation, the Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section determined that from at least January 1, 2021, through May 30, 2023, Burford’s routinely required lawful permanent residents to present specific immigration documents to establish their permission to work, even when they had already provided sufficient proof under the law.
Under the terms of the settlement, DOJ said Burford’s will pay $308,689 in civil penalties to the United States, train its personnel on anti-discrimination requirements, revise its employment policies that relate to hiring, and be subject to departmental monitoring.