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Jansen & Hastings Delivers Solution to Concerned Californian Builders



	"Companies need to be prepared to handle the challenging world of ICE raids and alleged IRCA and W&H violations" Kevin Hastings Managing Director Jansen & Hastings

October 22, 2007, San Francisco -- Responding to increasing pressure of U.S. immigration law enforcement on California's construction companies, Jansen & Hastings has launched ConstructINsure. This unique product provides cover against defense costs for alleged Wage & Hour (W&H) and 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) violations as well as broad Employment Practices Liability Insurance coverage.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency is taking an increasingly hard line on employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens.

"Builders have been calling the National Association of Home Builders complaining about an increase in raids on sites and more onerous Form I-9 audits to assess employment eligibility status. They are reporting 'challenging' experiences with ICE agents who are fostering the impression that general contractors may also have some responsibility for their subcontractors' hiring practices" comments Kevin Hastings, Managing Director, Jansen & Hastings.

Given that in California, under the IRCA legislation and W&H rules, directors of general and subcontractor firms can be imprisoned for up to ten years, or receive substantial fines, increased scrutiny is concerning many companies. The widely publicized raid on Fischer Homes and the award against Global Building Services Inc., which was forced to pay $1.9 million in back wages to 775 employees, has raised the temperature further.

In addition to increased coverage, ConstructINsure provides specialist risk management services at underwriters' expense through DBH Resources, Inc., to help the insured's HR department deal with these challenging exposures. ConstructINsure can be provided for any sized Californian Construction firm.

"Those in the construction industry are particularly hard hit by the increasingly stringent governmental regulations regarding employment practices, particularly those pertaining to immigration and wage hour issues," says George Dale, DBH Resource's Chief Executive Officer. DBH Resources will provide builders with the knowledge and tools to comply with these complicated labor laws.

"In 2002 the former Immigration Enforcement Agency made fewer than 600 arrests and brought criminal charges against 25 individuals. In the six months to September 30 last year its successor, ICE, made 4,400 arrests and brought criminal charges against 716 individuals. Companies need to be prepared to handle the challenging world of ICE raids and alleged IRCA and W&H violations," comments Kevin Hastings.

Notes for editors

From its offices in San Francisco and London, Jansen & Hastings works closely with insurance carriers in the US, London, Bermuda and Europe to handle insurance issues for residential construction companies. With its flexible, competitive and most importantly, financially sound markets, it offers a variety of products for developers, builders and subcontractors.

The article above was carried by the Insurance Times on 23 October 2007, click here to see the article.