Former illegal immigrant used fake Social Security number, sues over job rejections

[Rapunzel]

http://dailycaller.com/2013/12/10/former-illegal-immigrant-used-fake-social-security-number-sues-over-job-rejections/


Former illegal immigrant used fake Social Security number, sues over job rejections     

A Stockton, Calif. man believes his former status as an illegal immigrant, who operated under a fake Social Security number, should not have been held against him when he applied to become a correctional officer for the State of California.

Monday, the Legal Aid Society – Employment Law Center (LAS-ELC) filed suit in U.S. District Court in San Francisco on behalf of Victor Guerrero, 34, against the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) — which twice rejected Guerrero’s application to become a corrections officer due to his prior use of an invalid SSN — and the State Personnel Board (SPB), which upheld he denial.

LAS-ELC says Guerrero — who came to the United States illegally from Mexico at age 11 with his parents and obtained an invalid SSN at age 15 — did not know his SSN was fake until he was 17.

The law firm further claims that upon learning his SSN was fake, Guerrero obtained a individual tax identification number to pay his taxes and stopped using the fake SSN when he finally obtained his own real one. Prior to his legalization, Guerrero worked in a variety of service industry jobs.

Guerrero became a naturalized citizen in 2007.

In 2011, Guerrero applied for a job as a corrections officer, and while he passed the applicable tests, he admitted on the application that he had used a fake SSN in the past. The CDCR rejected his application, according to the LAS-ELC, as he “lack[ed] honesty, integrity, and good judgment.” Guerrero was rejected again in 2013 for the same reason.

According to Guerrero and his lawyers, this amounts to unfair discrimination against Hispanics and has no basis in state law.

“Those who are legally authorized to work should be able to do so regardless of their race, accent, or the country they come from,” Guerrero said in a statement provided by the law firm.

[GourmetDan]

We used to get these guys at work.

They'd come to HR and say, "I used to be Juan Gonzales, but my real name is Pedro Martinez and here are my legal documents..."

[raml]

I held a job that a felon couldn't have because it was JP Morgan a bank who hired me even though I was not working in one of their banks but another company they owned. It was the law that a felon can't work at a bank. I imagine the dept of corrections have the same laws it has nothing to do with discrimination. When I lived in California a church I belonged to had a couple of Hispanics who worked for the department of corrections very nice guys and I am sure there are plenty more who do so how can they prove discrimination? This type of lawsuit should just be thrown out and not have to be dealt with by the state it just adds to the growing debt the state has when they have to defend their laws. I say if it is law then that is it no exceptions. This has all come about because of the way Obama coddles illegals who break the law. Now even when one finally becomes a citizen they want to sue about something they shouldn't be allowed to.

[Oceander]

The facts are a little messier than they might seem based solely on the headline.  I don't think that this is unconstitutional discrimination, but I do think that the decision to not hire him because of the fact that he originally - when he was a minor - had a fake SSN was arbitrary and capricious and should be reversed as such by the California courts.  On the facts there is nothing to suggest that he "lack[ed] honesty, integrity, and good judgment" simply because as a minor he got a SSN that turned out to be fake.  The mere fact that he was illegal - which he may, or may not, have known, given his age - does not necessarily imply that he must have known that the SSN he got was fake or that he was not legally permitted to have an SSN.  Furthermore, the fact that he stopped using it once he learned it was fake and started using a TIN that he properly applied for - even though that change would indicate to the government that he had been using the old SSN illegally, thus exposing him to the danger of arrest, prosecution, and conviction - demonstrates that he in fact possessed "honesty, integrity, and good judgment."

I don't think this is a case of discrimination against hispanics, and I sincerely hope that the case is tossed on that basis, but I do think the denial was arbitrary and capricious and I would hope the California gov't, or the California courts, would see as much and reverse the denials.