PERM Labor Certification Application Approved in EB-2 Category for Research Chemist

PERM Labor Certification Application Approved in EB-2 Category for Research Chemist

Getson & Schatz, P.C. successfully represented an employer in the Chemical Manufacturing Industry to obtain approval of a PERM Labor Certification Application for a Chinese national in the EB-2 category for the position of Research Chemist. PERM Labor Certification is the first step of the green card process for most foreign nationals seeking permanent residence through employment. To obtain an approved PERM Labor Certification Application, the employer must demonstrate (through newspaper advertising and other recruiting methods) that there are no ready, willing, available and qualified U.S. workers for the offered position. PERM applications are filed directly with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and are filed either electronically or by mail using Form ETA-9089.  Employers do not submit supporting documentation with the PERM Labor Certification Application, but such documentation must be retained for 5 years from the filing date of the PERM Labor Certification Application for audit purposes.

The employer is a business consultant for chemical and pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. who want to manufacture their products overseas at a lower cost than what it would cost to manufacture their products in the U.S. Our Philadelphia immigration attorneys provided legal assistance to the employer in conducting recruitment and preparing a recruitment report for the DOL to demonstrate that none of the applicants for the position met both the minimum education and experience requirements for the position. The position of Research Chemist requires a minimum of a Master’s Degree in Chemistry or a related field plus 2 years’ experience in the job offered. The job duties of the position involve using a background in chemistry to conduct organic synthesis to determine the lab-scale and industrial manufacturing setup required to meet the specifications of the desired specialty chemical products. The position also involves monitoring the chemical makeup of the end specialty chemical products to ensure that the products manufactured at chemical plants overseas meet the chemical quality standards of the U.S. customers.  A Business Necessity Letter from the employer detailed how the job duties and minimum requirements of a Master’s Degree in Chemistry plus 2 years’ experience in the job offered arose from business necessity, meaning that the job duties and requirements bear a reasonable relationship to the occupation in the context of the employer’s business and are essential to perform the job in a reasonable manner.

Our immigration lawyers in Philadelphia provided legal assistance to the employer in conducting the recruitment for U.S. workers in accordance with DOL regulations and in demonstrating that such recruitment efforts failed to yield a ready, willing, qualified and available U.S. worker for the position. The recruitment report detailed the recruitment steps taken and the reasons why the applicants were lawfully not qualified for hire into the position.

Based on the lack of a ready, willing, available and qualified U.S. worker and the business necessity of the job duties and minimum requirements the PERM application was certified.