Justice Department Secures Agreement with North Carolina Printing Company to Resolve Claims of Immigration-related Discrimination

The Justice Department announced today that it has secured a settlement agreement with Printful Inc. (Printful), an on-demand printing and fulfillment company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The agreement resolves the department’s determination that Printful violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by discriminating against a worker based on her citizenship status when checking her permission to work, and by having a discriminatory policy requiring non-U.S. citizens to present specific documents to prove their permission to work.

“Companies cannot reject workers’ valid documents or require specific or unnecessary documents based on citizenship status when checking their permission to work,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to hold accountable employers who run afoul of our nation’s civil rights laws.”

The department’s investigations determined that Printful rejected a lawful permanent resident’s valid driver’s license and Social Security card, even though those documents were sufficient to prove her permission to work, and required her to present her Permanent Resident Card (sometimes referred to as a “green card”). The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) also concluded that Printful maintained at least a year-long policy, starting from July 2022 to July 2023, of requiring non-U.S. citizens to present specific documents to prove their permission to work while allowing U.S. citizens a choice of documents. Federal law allows all workers to choose which valid, legally acceptable documentation to present to demonstrate their identity and permission to work, regardless of citizenship, immigration status or national origin. Employers cannot demand more documents than are necessary or specify documentation they prefer to see as part of this process.

Under the terms of the settlement, Printful will pay civil penalties to the United States and backpay to the worker who filed a complaint. The agreement also requires Printful to train its personnel on the INA’s anti-discrimination requirements, revise its employment policies and be subject to departmental monitoring and reporting requirements.

IER is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. Among other things, the statute prohibits discrimination based on citizenship status and national origin in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; retaliation and intimidation. 

Find more information on how employers can avoid discrimination when verifying someone’s permission to work on IER’s website. Learn more about IER’s work and how to get assistance through this brief video. Applicants or employees who believe they were discriminated against based on their citizenship, immigration status or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment or during the employment eligibility verification process (Form I-9 and E-Verify); or subjected to retaliation, may file a charge. The public can also call IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); sign up for a live webinar or watch an on-demand presentation; email IER@usdoj.gov or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites. Sign up for email updates from IER.