Gov't going after hiring of illegals

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is instructing immigration agents to go after employers who knowingly hire and exploit illegal workers.

According to a copy of the guidelines obtained by The Associated Press, this policy will impose fines and criminal charges for breaking the law.

The policy is considered a ``renewed department-wide focus'' on criminal aliens and employers who break the U.S. immigration laws, but the policy is not markedly different from the Bush administration policies which also targeted employers. The Barack Obama policy, however, stresses that humanitarian guidelines will be followed more broadly than in the previous administration.

While the priority is to go after employers, the policy states that agents will continue to arrest illegal workers.