Body Beautiful Car Wash, Inc., with 4 car wash locations in San Diego County, has become the first car wash company in the nation to have their workforce audited and certified under the Department of Homeland Security’s IMAGE program to ensure a 100% legal workforce.
The car wash chain was recently certified by ICE in San Diego for the (IMAGE) program. IMAGE stands for ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employer, a relatively new Department of Homeland Security voluntary program that goes far beyond E-Verify computer checks for new employees. ICE actually visits the company, conducts a full I-9 audit, and checks the documentation of each employee to ensure that no illegal workers have fraudulently gained employment at that business.
ICE also trains IMAGE employers to identify fraudulent documents often used by illegal aliens trying to gain employment in the U.S.
The President of Body Beautiful, Yogesh Mody, said he’s proud to participate in the IMAGE program and set a new standard in the car wash industry, which has a reputation for hiring illegal aliens to clean cars. “I have always tried to comply with hiring laws, but the IMAGE Program gives me the tools and resources to make it easy to hire legal workers”, Mody said. “I sleep well at night knowing I am in full compliance with the law.”
Mody said there are three main reasons he signed up for the IMAGE Program. First, he wanted to make his managers’ jobs easier by taking the burden of detecting fraudulent documents off of them and shifting it to the DHS data base. Second, he wants his customers to know that his employees have all been checked using multiple government databases, and third, he wants his employees to know that they work for an employer who plays by the rules.
Mody said that he's had no problem finding legal employees to work at his car washes, especially with current high unemployment. Body Beautiful employs between 130-150 full-time and part-time employees, depending on the season.
Body Beautiful Car Washes have been in San Diego County since 1979. The four locations are Downtown San Diego, Mission Valley, Poway, and El Cajon.
There are now 7 total IMAGE certified businesses in San Diego County, including Betz Concrete, UNICEL Corp., A-1 Fire Protection, and San Diego Flight Training International. ICE has just streamlined the certification process and hopes that many more businesses in San Diego and nationwide will sign up for the free program to ensure compliance with U.S. employment laws. The program is free to employers.
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