California employers: take notice. On July 24, 2023, the Office of Administrative Law approved changes to the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) regulations governing how California employers can use and consider criminal history in employment decisions. These new changes, modifying Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 2, § 11017.1, go into effect on October 1, 2023.
Continue Reading California Employers: Updated Regulations for Use of Criminal History in Hiring Decisions Go into Effect October 1, 2023
Earlier this year, Harris County, Texas, which encompasses a substantial majority of the City of Houston, became the sixth Texas city or county to embrace a “ban the box” policy when it adopted the Fair Chance Policy.
Continue Reading Harris County Becomes Latest in Texas to Adopt a Ban the Box Hiring Policy
Uber Technologies, Inc. has been sued in a class action lawsuit alleging the company’s use of criminal background checks discriminates against Black and Latinx drivers. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on April 8, challenges Uber’s “unlawful use of criminal history to discriminate against its drivers in New York City as well as its brazen noncompliance with human rights and fair credit laws.”
Continue Reading Gig Employer Hit with Background Check Class Action
In January 2021, New York City amended the Fair Chance Act to expand protections for both applicants and employees with criminal histories. The amendments take effect July 29, 2021, adding additional protections for workers in the state.
Continue Reading New York City Expands Protections For Applicants and Employees With Criminal Histories
Imagine this: you are an employer in California, and you recently hired a new employee. You ran your own background check, which did not turn up any criminal convictions. However, the employee’s job duties include submitting online applications to a government agency, which requires the employee to complete a Live Scan background check with the Department of Justice. The Live Scan reveals that the employee has a past criminal conviction that will prevent her from submitting the applications. You terminate the employee, and she tells you the conviction was judicially dismissed. What do you do?
Continue Reading Dismissed Criminal Convictions in California
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regularly releases guidance and advice to employers to aid in compliance with applicable workplace discrimination laws. For example, over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EEOC has frequently issued and updated guidance on how employers can strike the difficult balance between workplace safety and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Continue Reading EEOC Issues Final Rule on Guidance Procedures
Nationwide, 36 states and over 150 municipalities have adopted “ban the box” laws that prohibit employers from asking applicants about their conviction or arrest records on their initial applications. This article provides updates on recent changes and updates in Hawaii, California, and St. Louis, Missouri.
Continue Reading More States and Localities Enact and Strengthen Ban the Box Laws
On December 17, 2019, the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 was signed by the President as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. This federal “ban-the-box” law proscribes federal agencies and contractors from asking about a job applicant’s criminal history until after they make a conditional offer of employment.
Continue Reading The Federal “Ban the Box” Law Is Enacted While Evidence Suggests that Such Laws Do Not Have the Intended Consequences
On November 22, 2019, the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Sterling Infosystems, Inc. regarding allegations that it violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act in providing criminal background checks to employers. Sterling is a “consumer reporting agency” as defined by the FCRA, which provides background check results to employers when requested.
Continue Reading Background Check Vendors Beware: the CFPB’s Authority to Enforce the FCRA Applies to You Too
Dollar General and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently settled a six-year-old Title VII lawsuit. The EEOC brought its race discrimination claim on behalf of a Charging Party and a class of Black job applicants, alleging that Dollar General’s use of criminal justice history information in the hiring process had a disparate impact on Black applicants.
Continue Reading The EEOC Settles Six-Year-Old Lawsuit Attacking Background Check Policy