Originally published in Daily Labor Report on 06/18/2012.

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—The federal government’s electronic employment eligibility verification program — E-Verify — is the ‘‘elephant in the room,’’ seen as a rapidly expanding system in which almost 2,000 employers enroll each week, many of whom struggle to grasp its monitoring and compliance requirements, speakers at the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s national conference said June 16.

Employers that join E-Verify by signing a memorandum of understanding with the Department of Homeland Security must be aware of their obligations under the program, which is here to stay and has departed from its purely ‘‘voluntary’’ beginnings, speakers said.