Communication and Outreach Study

ATTACHMENT E:

FOCUS GROUP PROTOCOL FOR INACTIVE USERS

DRAFT E-Verify Evaluation – Communication and Outreach Study

Focus Group Script

Inactive Users Group

I want to thank you for agreeing to participate and for fitting this session into your busy schedules.

My name is __________ and I work for Westat, a social science research firm in Rockville, MD. Today, I will be the moderator for this 45-minute group discussion.

We are conducting a study of the E-Verify work-authorization program administered by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in the Department of Homeland Security. As part of the study we are examining the effectiveness of the communication and outreach activities conducted by the program to increase employers’ awareness about it. Our purpose today is to obtain input from companies that enrolled in the Program but have not submitted any cases for a year or so.

In order to make this an efficient session, here are some guidelines:

• Please talk one at a time.
  

• Talk in a voice as loud as mine.
  
  

• Avoid side conversations with others in the group.
  
  

• I need to hear from everyone; however, you do not have to answer every question.
  

• It is OK to piggyback on someone else’s comments.
  

• Work for equal “air time” so that no one talks too little or too much.
  
  

• Allow for different points of view. There are no wrong answers.

• All discussions are private. We will not use your name or the name of your company in any reports or notes. I encourage you to speak honestly and candidly so we can hear as many perspectives as possible. To reinforce privacy, can we all agree NOT to share information from the focus group with anyone outside of the group? [WAIT FOR EVERYONE TO SAY “YES.”]

• With me is a member of the Westat study team, who is taking notes as a backup to the audio recording. The session is being recorded to enable me to write an accurate report, not of who said what but “what was said.”

• When you begin to respond to a question or make a comment, please start by stating your first name only, so that I can identify the speaker while also protecting your privacy.

• Please use your phone handset rather than the speaker phone, if possible, when you are speaking. The speaker phone is more likely to distort the sound or pick up background noise.

• We have a number of topics to cover in a short period of time; therefore, I apologize up front if I must interrupt you so we can move on to the next topic. If time permits, I will return to any unfinished discussions.

Do you have any questions before we begin? [WAIT FOR RESPONSE.]

First, I’d like to ask about your familiarity with E-Verify.

1. How did you first find out about E-Verify? [PROBE ON PERSON, ORGANIZATION, AND MEDIA, IF NOT MENTIONED.]

• IF HEARD ABOUT IT FROM SOMEONE IN THE COMPANY, THEN PROBE: What position does/did this person hold in your company (e.g., HR representative, CEO, legal counsel, administrative staff)?

• IF HEARD ABOUT IT FROM MEDIA, THEN PROBE: Where did you hear or read about it (e.g., print, radio, TV, or internet advertisements; PSAs; association outreach events; newsletter articles)?

• Do you recall what was said/mentioned about E-Verify? If so, please tell me more about it.

2. Could you share with me the reason your company has not submitted any
E-Verify cases in the past year?

3. Has your company experienced barriers or challenges as an E-Verify user?

For those of you who said yes:

• What barriers or challenges did your company experience?

3. What motivated your company to participate in E-Verify when your company enrolled?

3. What did your company see as the benefits of participating in E-Verify?

3. Has your opinion of E-Verify changed at all over the past 5 years? If so, how?

3. The next few questions are for those companies that are no longer participating in E-Verify:

• Do you recall who (i.e., their position) in your company made the decision not to continue participating in the Program?

[NOTE: IT IS POSSIBLE THAT NO FORMAL DECISION TO STOP PARTICIPATING WAS MADE, E.G., THE PERSON ENTERING
E-VERIFY CASES LEFT THE COMPANY AND NOBODY TOOK UP THIS RESPONSIBILITY]

• Would any type of communication messages about E-Verify change your company’s opinion about participating again?

• What information, if any, might encourage you to participate again as an E-Verify user?

• How would you prefer to receive this information?

1. Print (newspaper, newsletters)

2. Radio or TV ads

3. E-Verify website

4. Posters in public areas (buses, rail)
   
   
   

3. These next questions are for everyone. How do you usually receive business or employment-related information? PROBE FOR THE NAMES OF SPECIFIC PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS.

3. In the past 12 months, have you participated in any USCIS-sponsored E-Verify webinars?

For those of who you said yes:

• In which webinar(s) did you participate?

• How did you find out about the webinar(s)?

• What topics were covered in the webinar(s)?

• What did you like most about this activity? Least?

3. In the past 12 months, have you participated in any live E-Verify training or education events or activities sponsored by USCIS?

For those of who you said yes:

• In which event(s) did you participate?

• How did you find out about the event(s)?

• What topics were covered in the event(s)?

• What did you like most about this activity? Least?

3. In the past 12 months, have you visited the E-Verify public website that is available for anyone to search?

For those of who you said yes:

• What prompted you to visit the website?

• If you were looking for something in particular, did you find it?

• What topics did you read about on the website?

• Did you view any of the instructional videos on the website? If so:

  • What videos did you watch?

• What did you like most about the website? Least?

3. What other topics should be covered in the webinars, live events, public website, or other education tools?

3. Do you have anything else you would like to share with me regarding communication about E-Verify?

We very much appreciate your taking time from your busy schedule to participate in this interview. Your opinions about this program are very important to us and to the client. You should be receiving your check for participating in this focus group within the next two weeks. Thank you again.