Chipotle Under Fire From Feds

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is preparing to crack down on 60 Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants in the D.C.-Virginia area in an effort to weed out undocumented workers, the restaurant chain confirmed Monday.

The popular burrito chain received "notices of inspections" from the federal agency alerting owners that they'll be audited to determine if they're in compliance with employment eligibility laws.

"The unfortunate part of the system is that it puts companies in a very difficult position," Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold said in an email. "On one hand, we must comply with ICE requirements to verify the status of every employee we hire, but we must do that without discriminating and violating the mandate of the Department of Justice."

Chipotle has "very robust" policies in place that "ensure that everyone we hire is legally authorized to work in this country," Arnold said.

The audit of local restaurants comes on the heels of similar investigations at the chain's locations in Minnesota, which resulted in hundreds of employee firings.

 "As for why ICE is picking on Chipotle, that is a better question to ask ICE," Arnold said.

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