Supervised Recruitment FAQs

From: USADNEWS Volume III, Issue 1

The DOL formally released FAQs this month on the topic of Supervised Recruitment. We have highlighted a few of the most important items below.

Notice: Reasons & Timeframes

The Certifying Officer (CO) may determine that supervised recruitment is necessary if the employer “substantially failed” to give the required documentation, or provided “inadequate” or “materially misrepresented” information.
The employer first receives a Notification of Supervised Recruitment letter. The employer must then provide a draft of the advertisement to the CO within 30 days from the date of the notification letter. The drafted ad is subject to the CO’s review, and the CO may identify changes that need to be made. The recruitment may not begin until the employer receives a Recruitment Instructions letter from the CO.
As specified in the Recruitment Instructions letter, the advertisement will direct applicants to reply to a PO Box address. The CO will send all applications and resumes to the employer, their agent, or their attorney for consideration.
The employer is required to submit a recruitment report within 30 days of receiving a written request from the CO. A one-time extension on the report may be granted for good cause at the CO’s discretion.
Processing time for a supervised recruitment application should take about 180 days, assuming that no extensions are made and no additional documentation is required by the CO.
Compliance:

Failure to respond in a timely manner or to request an extension of time will result in a denial of the application. A pattern of compliance failures may result in debarment from the PERM program for up to 3 years.
The employer must notify the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) of any change in representation once the decision to hire an agent or attorney is finalized. The notice must be included in communication, and a hard copy of the signed original must be mailed to the OFLC.
The OFLC will not communicate with any attorney or agent of the employer unless notice establishing the representation as been provided and they are listed on the ETA Form 9089 submitted for the case.