New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection is cracking down on employment agencies that charged job seekers illegal upfront fees for work that never materialized, the agency said, following 2023 reporting by City Limits that documented the practice among newly arrived immigrants and asylum seekers.
Thousands of local job hunters in recent years have paid illegal upfront fees to employment agencies, or received only partial refunds for what they paid despite not landing work, according to the city. Those affected were disproportionately low-income residents who are not native English speakers, the city said.
The enforcement push follows a 2023 City Limits investigation that exposed how newly arrived immigrants and asylum seekers who had turned to employment agencies for help were paying fees for jobs that never came through, according to the outlet’s reporting, which the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection credited as the basis for its renewed scrutiny.
City Limits reported the crackdown in a February 10 newsletter. The outlet did not detail in that item how many agencies face penalties or what specific actions the department has taken against them.
The department has since spelled out the scope. As part of its “Fee Free February” initiative, the agency reported conducting citywide inspections and sending compliance notices to more than 270 registered businesses. In its largest enforcement outcome, the department said CMP Employment Agency was ordered to pay $2,266,500 in civil penalties and more than $979,600 in consumer restitution.
