Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
by Kevin J. Skelly The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and corresponding state laws impose obligations on employers that rely on certain background checks to make employment decisions. A recent class action lawsuit filed in New Jersey federal court should serve as a wakeup call for employers on the many pitfalls associated with conducting […]
Only a Reasonable Expectation It is important to remember that employees have only a reasonable expectation of privacy. Employers can lower the threshold of what is considered reasonable by developing a clear policy addressing workplace privacy issues and communicating the policy to their employees. Private Employees Enjoy Relatively Little Freedom Several states have enacted statutory […]
Over the past few years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has aggressively challenged the use of credit reports and criminal history checks in hiring decisions, alleging that use of the information results in a discriminatory impact on candidates in protected groups. In 2012, the commission successfully negotiated a $3.13 million prelawsuit settlement of a […]
by Steven Collis In its first class action lawsuit challenging an employer’s use of criminal records, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ended up dropping its case against PeopleMark and getting socked with $750,000 in sanctions. Recently, the EEOC suffered another stinging loss when a federal court dismissed its discrimination case against Kaplan Higher Education […]
by Kara E. Shea Do you use a third-party service to conduct background checks on job applicants or employees? If so, then you should take note of the new forms you are required to use for that purpose, effective January 1. The “new” forms originally were issued last year but had to be revised because […]
Yesterday, we got some insights on background checks from Jared Callahan, a licensed private investigator and the director of client services for Employment Screening Resources (ESR) in Novato. Today, his thoughts on two more common “checks”: fingerprint checks and reference checks.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed a complaint in the U.S. district court in Maryland against Freeman Companies, a Dallas-based corporate event-planning company. The EEOC claims that Freeman’s use of credit histories and criminal background checks discriminates against black, Hispanic, and male job applicants in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights […]