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Sweet marketing music

Tanner Montague came to town from Seattle having never owned his own music venue before. He’s a musician himself, so he has a pretty good sense of good music, but he also wandered into a crowded music scene filled with concert venues large and small.But the owner of Green Room thinks he found a void in the market. It’s lacking, he says, in places serving between 200 and 500 people, a sweet spot he thinks could be a draw for both some national acts not quite big enough yet for arena gigs and local acts looking for a launching pad.“I felt that size would do well in the city to offer more options,” he says. “My goal was to A, bring another option for national acts but then, B, have a great spot for local bands to start.”Right or wrong, something seems to be working, he says. He’s got a full calendar of concerts booked out several months. How did he, as a newcomer to the market in an industry filled with competition, get the attention of the local concertgoer?

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by Andrew Tellijohn
June 2003

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Law

business builder law  

Firms can hire foreign
nationals, with right strategy

by Dan Palmquist      

Patrick’s French Bakery owner Patrick Bernet needed a classically trained French pastry chef to help run his Minneapolis business. He was acting as pastry chef himself while also running every other part of the business — and working 20 hours a day.

However, federal immigration authorities, especially since the Sept. 11 attacks, have been reluctant to issue permanent visas and work permits to foreign nationals for jobs other than “professional” positions requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Bernet succeeded through a mixture of tenacity and creativity.  He made a solid case that he was, in fact, hiring a professional in every sense of the word. He demonstrated how in France a pastry chef’s expertise is the result of a multi-year, professional education program comparable to a college degree. He backed up his case by obtaining letters from deans of pastry schools in the United States and pastry chefs in Europe. He also demonstrated that the specific skills he needed were not available in the local labor pool.

As a result, Bernet is spending more time running his business and working more reasonable hours, while his customers are enjoying éclairs and tarts that are said to be among the best in town.

Hurdles get higher
Bernet’s experience is not uncommon for a business seeking to hire a foreign national. The former Immigration and Naturalization Service, or INS, is now the Bureau of Immigration and Citizenship Services, part of the new Department of Homeland Security.

However, like Bernet, most business owners can succeed in hiring foreign nationals. The key is to start with an overall strategy that is likely to succeed, create the requisite documentation, and follow the precise procedures required for the type of visa and work permit needed.

In some cases, U.S. immigration law requires that employers try filling open jobs with qualified American workers before trying to hire a foreign national. But there are plenty of jobs for which qualified applicants are not available or, in some cases, in which the local work force is not interested.

When a local software company sought to hire software developers from India who had very specific skills, it had to demonstrate that the skills it was proposing to hire from overseas could not be found in the local workforce. This involved advertising the position locally to establish that a good-faith attempt had been made to hire U.S. workers first.

For St. Paul Public Schools, an ongoing challenge is to recruit qualified teachers who are fluent in foreign languages. Some of the best candidates are foreign nationals. As part of this effort, the school district has worked with attorneys to facilitate the process of meeting the legal requirements for visas and permits.

Many other jobs cannot be filled without foreign workers. In the agricultural sector, Hispanic workers from Mexico and other countries provide an important work force in Greater Minnesota. In nursing homes and hospitals in the state, workers from other countries are making a significant contribution to providing care for our sick and elderly.

It’s important, however, for employers to remember that hiring or retaining foreign nationals who do not have proper visas and work permits is against the law, and that the penalties for noncompliance can be severe. Employers should also know that ignorance might not be an effective defense. Employers are required to determine if employees are foreign nationals, and to make sure foreign nationals on the payroll have valid visas and work permits.

Fortunately, the rules are fairly clear. Keep in mind the following:

• For permanent visas, be prepared to demonstrate that the candidate’s skills match the specific job requirements. The INS requires a very detailed description of the job specifications and duties as compared with the candidate’s background, skill-level and experience. For temporary visas, the rules may be less stringent.

• Be prepared to pay at 95 percent or above the prevailing wage.

• Assist the candidate in applying for the appropriate visa and permits to work in the United States.  There are several options for employers to get to know.

The H-1B visa is the most common type of non-immigrant (temporary) visa for professionals or for those with specialty occupations.

The NAFTA TN visa is relevant for Mexicans or Canadians.  Canadians are often granted a TN visa at the border as a temporary visa. The TN visa for Mexicans or Canadians is for professionals and is job-specific.

• A green card can take two to three years to get and is a permanent visa.

When obtaining a permanent visa, the first step is to proceed with your recruitment campaign by defining your available position and its minimum requirements. The definition is crucial; how you define a position will often be the key factor in whether or not you succeed. Expert advice is helpful if you want to avoid complications, delays or adverse outcomes.

Limiting uncertainty
The two things most businesses want to know about visa applications are how long it will take and will it be successful?

To reduce that uncertainty, employers should stay on top of the latest immigration developments, issues and opportunities. If that’s not possible, employers should encourage candidates to work with law firms or service agencies that have an established track record in immigration law. The law can be complex, and changes are constantly occurring in the new Department of Homeland Security. A good immigration professional can help keep your employee’s application on track and increase the chances of timely success.

Some law firms and service agencies now provide Web-based tools in lieu of traditional paper-based systems. The result is a faster, more cost-effective means of obtaining visas and work permits and getting that desired employee working for you in the shortest possible time.

Getting through the labyrinth of immigration law may seem daunting at times, but as Patrick’s French Bakery and other Minnesota businesses have found, it’s well worth the effort.