Joint DOL-DOJ $2 Million Settlement Greatly Escalates "Green Card" Visa Sponsorship Enforcement
DOJ-DOL Resolution with Cloudera Also Converts Temporary Suspension into Two-Year Debarment
Earlier this year, Silberman Law reported on an unprecedented joint action by U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Labor against Cloudera. The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) sued the Cloudera claiming bias against U.S. citizens in PERM recruitment, while the Department of Labor (“DOL”) suspended processing company’s PERM applications for 180 days.
The agencies have resolved this with a big monetary settlement and long debarment.
Cloudera will:
- Be debarred from PERM for two years,
- Establish a $1.4 million back-pay fund,
- Pay $600,000 in civil penalties, and
- Operate under ongoing government monitoring requirements.
Why This Matters
The resolution reinforces two growing enforcement trends employers need to watch closely:
- Cross-agency coordination and joint enforcement. DOJ’s discrimination enforcement and DOL’s administration of the PERM program were brought together in an aggressive coordinated action. This new approach means any noncompliant ‘point of entry’ will often lead to government scrutiny in other areas.
- Program debarment is a significant enforcement tool, not simply a temporary procedural step. DOL first imposed an interim 180-day suspension while DOJ’s case was pending. The final resolution resulted in a two-year PERM debarment.
What Should Employers Do?
For employers sponsoring foreign workers for permanent residence, the message is clear: PERM recruitment must be treated as a genuine hiring process, with procedures designed to give qualified U.S. workers the same opportunity to apply and receive consideration. Employers should —
- Compare PERM recruitment with ordinary recruitment, including posting location, application method, applicant tracking, screening, and documentation;
- Eliminate separate or unnecessary recruitment barriers that make sponsored positions harder for U.S. workers to either locate or apply for; and
- Consider a privileged review of active and recent PERM matters to ensure compliance, or make needed changes before a federal agency initiates an investigation.
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If you have questions about this Alert or need guidance regarding PERM recruitment, immigration sponsorship programs, or workplace immigration compliance, please contact the Silberman Law legal professional with whom you work, or simply reply to this Alert.
U.S. DOL Aggressively Expands Use of "Green Card" Program Restrictions in High-Profile Enforcement Actions
The Key Development –The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) suspended eight prominent employers/federal contractors from using the “green card” process to convert temporary visa workers into employees
Discontinue Using U.S. DOL Form CC-305 Inviting Applicants & Employees to Self-Identify Disability Status by September 21, 2026.
The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) $3.2 million settlement with OpenAI highlights growing exposure for employers when a ‘green card’ recruitment process differs from ordinary recruitment practices. HR, talent acquisition, and global mobility teams should ensure that green card sponsored recruitment
U.S. DOL Aggressively Expands Use of "Green Card" Program Restrictions in High-Profile Enforcement Actions
The Key Development –The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) suspended eight prominent employers/federal contractors from using the “green card” process to convert temporary visa workers into employees
Discontinue Using U.S. DOL Form CC-305 Inviting Applicants & Employees to Self-Identify Disability Status by September 21, 2026.
The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) $3.2 million settlement with OpenAI highlights growing exposure for employers when a ‘green card’ recruitment process differs from ordinary recruitment practices. HR, talent acquisition, and global mobility teams should ensure that green card sponsored recruitment
Join Us for This Discussion About Recent and Impending EEO Reporting Changes and the Options, Risks and Strategies for Employers to Consider
Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 12:30pm ET
Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor issued final regulations that result in significant changes to the EEO and affirmative action
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Note: This Alert has been updated to reflect different effective dates for two separate regulations we describe below.
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) published on August 21, 2026, three final rules addressing federal contractor equal employment opportunity obligations.
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) will publish today, Friday, August 21, 2026, three final rules addressing federal contractor equal employment opportunity obligations.
The new regulations become effective October 26, 2026.
In late May 2026, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed the Connecticut Artificial Intelligence Responsibility & Transparency Act (the "Act"). The Act is comprehensive and regulates many different areas beyond employment, such as consumer and companion chatbots, frontier-model developers, generative-AI content
What Does This Mean for Colorado Employers?
This new law passed in Colorado imposes specific restrictions on how employers handle government-issued identification documents for their Colorado employees. The law prohibits employers from demanding, confiscating, or improperly retaining certain identification documents,
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